Bring That Week Back: Week of April 26
Is Alicia Keys expecting? Plus Diddy apologizes and Haiti tosses kidnapping charges. Get more!
1 / 27
Nelly’s Cousin Killed - Michael Johnson, a man who rapper Nelly referred to as his cousin on Twitter, was shot multiple times and killed outside of his home in St. Louis Wednesday night. Police have not announced any arrests or motives for the crime. After the tragedy, Nelly went to Twitter to set the record straight about Johnson (previous reports stated he was the rapper’s bodyguard) and to lash out against the local TV stations that asked him about Johnson’s death while he was giving away scholarships.
2 / 27
Rumor: Alicia Keys Expecting? - This week, Hip Hop Weekly reported that singer Alicia Keys is pregnant by her boyfriend producer Swizz Beatz. The two have been seeing each other since 2008, when the producer announced his split with singer Mashonda. The publication hasn’t been able to confirm the pregnancy, but claims it received the news from a source close to the couple.
3 / 27
NFL Exec Asks Player If His Mom’s a Prostitute - Dolphin GM Jeff Ireland is drawing heat for asking former Oklahoma State receiver Dez Bryant whether his mom was ever a prostitute during a pre-draft interview. In a statement, the NFL said that Ireland “exercised poor judgment, and Ireland has apologized to Bryant for his question publicly and privately.” However, the apologies came after the question was reported in Yahoo! Sports. “My mom is not a prostitute,” Bryant told the news service. He also said he got really angry at the question.
4 / 27
Kings' Evans NBA Rookie of Year - Sacramento Kings point guard Tyreke Evans was presented with this season’s Rookie of the Year award. Evans averaged 20.1 points, 5.8 assists, 5.3 rebounds and 1.5 steals this season. Besides Evans, only Oscar Robertson, Michael Jordan and LeBron James averaged at least 20 points, five rebounds and five assists as a rookie, the Philadelphia Inquirer reports.
5 / 27
Twitter Brings Diddy, UK Rapper Together - When rapper P. Diddy asked his over 2.5 million Twitter followers which UK rapper he should use for a remix of his song, “Hello, Good Morning,” he got a record response, with people saying he and his group Dirty Money should collaborate with London rapper Skepta. After Diddy made that announcement and made contact with Skepta via direct messaging, he tweeted, “@Skepta good talking to you. Let’s see if we can catch a vibe. And if it’s meant to be then we let the people hear it."
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6 / 27
Bullock Adopts Son - After a momentous year, in which she won an Oscar and had her marriage collapse in the public eye, actress Sandra Bullock announced two more biggies: She’s divorcing her unfaithful husband, and she’s adopting a child. Bullock made the newest revelations in an interview with People, published online Wednesday. Bullock brought 3½-month-old Louis Bardo Bullock, who is Black, home to California earlier this year and has managed to keep his existence a secret to most. The baby was born in New Orleans
7 / 27
Beyoncé Reportedly Pulls Out of 'Star is Born' - Actor Russell Crowe is down for the “Star is Born” remake but Beyoncé isn’t, according to reports. “I think [Beyoncé] pulled out. But I’m still chatting about it. It’s one of those movies that has been made a lot, but I think it’s still quite a big focus,” Crowe said recently while promoting his new movie. The classic movie, now in the development process, was originally released in 1937.
8 / 27
Obama Eulogizes Dorothy Height - The funeral of Civil Rights icon Dorothy Height took place in D.C.’s National Cathedral Thursday with President Obama giving the eulogy. During his talk, he praised Height, saying she didn’t care about being in the limelight. “What she cared about was the cause. The cause of justice, the cause of equality, the cause of opportunity, freedom's cause,” he said. Height died last week at age 98 of natural causes. Mrs. Obama, VP Biden and his wife, the Rev. Jesse Jackson and more attended.
9 / 27
DMX Files Suit - DMX wants to get paid. The troubled rapper, who is currently serving time in a Phoenix jail for violating probation, filed a lawsuit on Monday against a company he says stole royalties from him. The suit claims that Rich Kid Entertainment collected but paid him no royalties on his popular hits. He says he was getting ripped off for years, but he’s been locked up so much he just noticed the problem.
10 / 27
Crawford Wins NBA Sixth Man Award - Atlanta Hawks guard Jamal Crawford was awarded the NBA’s Sixth Man award this week in a landslide decision. This season, Crawford averaged 18 points a game in 31.1 minutes coming off the bench for the first time in his career. “You have to check your ego at the door,” he said. “It’s all about winning. You do what you’ve got to do.” The Hawks are tied 2-2 with Milwaukee in the first round of the playoffs.
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11 / 27
Diddy, Rihanna, Keys to Join Concert Series - “Good Morning America” is in for a star-studded summer with its upcoming concert series. Diddy and Dirty Money (June 4), Rihanna (August 20) and Alicia Keys (June 25) are just a few of the acts scheduled to perform. The concerts will take place every Friday and the series will kick off May 21.
12 / 27
Ice Cube Connects Rap, Raiders - Rapper/actor Ice Cube has made a documentary about the connection between his old group NWA and the NFL Raiders. The film, which will air on ESPN in May as part of the network’s “30 for 30” series, is entitled “Straight Outta L.A.” People in his neighborhood could identify with the Raiders, says Cube. "The Lakers was real glitzy and glamour; the Dodgers were seen as a little out of reach. But the Raiders, it seemed like my uncles played for the Raiders."
13 / 27
LeBron, an NBA Owner? - LeBron James could have his eyes on NBA team ownership after his playing days are over. The Cavs star said that he’d love to own a team one day, following in the footsteps of Michael Jordan who bought the Charlotte Bobcats last month. “It’s a great position to be able to own a team and be able to put pieces together and make decisions,” he said prior to a playoff game this week.
14 / 27
Diddy “Apologizes” in Bubble Bath - Sitting in a tub, surrounded by bubbles and sipping from a martini glass, Ciroc vodka spokesman P. Diddy offered an “apology” to rival vodka makers. In the video released via Twitter, he apologized for his company being “the best” and winning “two prestigious double gold medals in the San Francisco World Spirits competition.” Last month, Diddy offended other vodka makers when he said, “"If you're not drinking Ciroc vodka, then you're drinking pee pee."
15 / 27
ESPN Draws Record Audience with NFL Draft - The NFL draft has become such a popular television event that the first round on ESPN seemed to steal viewers from some of the biggest networks’ Thursday shows. An estimated 7.3 million watched the draft that night, its ratings up 23 percent from 2009, the Nielsen Co. said. ESPN's three days of draft coverage, two of them in primetime, drew the biggest audience this event has ever received.
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16 / 27
Armed Man Arrested as Obama Leaves N.C. - On Sunday, authorities arrested Ohio man Joseph Sean McVey at a North Carolina airport and charged him with going armed in terror of the public. McVey, who was armed with a gun, told an officer in the airport parking lot that he wanted to see the president. McVey’s car was equipped with police gear, even though he’s not an officer. Authorities released him Tuesday under a $100,000 secured bond.
17 / 27
Ex-Jail Guard Accused of Spying on Lil Wayne - Amelia Negron, a former guard at New York’s Rikers Island, says she was wrongly fired for spying on Lil Wayne. Negron says she went to the jailed rapper’s unit to see a co-worker, when the officer said that she couldn’t be back there. Negron says she left with no issue but was fired after being forced to falsely confess she spied on Wayne. The Department of Corrections claims she was fired for missing too many days of work. Negron is preparing a suit against the city.
18 / 27
Austrian Officer Charged for Beating Black Man - Austrian police charged an undercover policeman Tuesday with badly beating a Black American teacher after mistaking him for a drug dealer at a Vienna subway station. Mike Brenan, says officers “came out of nowhere” to attack him, without identifying themselves, last February. The case sparked outrage among Vienna's expatriate community and other foreigners who say they are unfairly treated by authorities due to their skin color.
19 / 27
Haiti Tosses Kidnapping Charges - This week, a Haitian judge dropped kidnapping charges against all 10 U.S. missionaries detained for trying to take children out of the country shortly after the nation’s devastating quake. Laura Silsby isn’t totally off the hook yet, though. She still faces a charge of organizing the illegal transport of 33 children. She could get a maximum of three years in prison if found guilty.
20 / 27
Malcolm X Assassin Freed - Thomas Hagan, age 69, the only man to admit involvement in the assassination of Malcolm X, was freed on parole Tuesday, 45 years after he helped gun down the civil rights leader. He was freed from a New York prison where he spent two days a week under a work-release program. Hagan admitted that he was one of three men who shot Malcolm X in front of a crowd of hundreds while two accomplices created a distraction in the audience.
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21 / 27
Obama's Main Street Tour - President Obama hit the road Tuesday to resume his White House to Main Street tour. He started in Iowa, where he toured Siemens Energy Inc Facility before holding a town hall meeting at a community college. On Wednesday, he made stops in Missouri and spoke at the Oakley Lindsay Civic Center in Illinois.
22 / 27
NBA Playoffs: Cavs Beat Bulls, Suns Top Blazers - The Cleveland Cavaliers, led by MVP favorite LeBron James, closed out their series with the Bulls Tuesday with a 96-94 victory. The Cavs won the series 4-1, and will go on to face the Celtics in the second round. The Phoenix Suns also closed out their series against the Blazers this week, winning 4-2. They will move on to face the Spurs.
23 / 27
Harvard Dean Condemns Offensive E-mail - The dean of Harvard Law School spoke out against an email written by a White student that suggested that Blacks could be genetically inferior to Whites. In a letter to students and staff on Thursday, Dean Martha Minow called the sending of the email a “sad and unfortunate incident.” She added that the school is “committed to preventing degradation of any individual or group.” The student has since apologized to the Harvard Black Law Students Association for her email.
24 / 27
Kobe Bryant's Jersey is Tops - For the second year in a row, the Kobe Bryant jersey ranks as the most popular in the NBA. Rounding out the top five are the Cavs’ LeBron James (No. 2), Boston’s Kevin Garnett (No. 3), the Bulls’ Derrick Rose (No. 4) and Orlando’s Dwight Howard (No. 5).
25 / 27
Trina to Drop Album in May - Miami MC Trina will be dropping her new album, “Amazin’” on May 4. Her last album, “Still the Baddest” came out in 2008. “Amazin’” will feature appearances from Monica, Diddy and more.
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26 / 27
Sale of Wizards Close to Final - The sale of the Washington Wizards to Washington Capitals owner Ted Leonsis is almost done. The family of the late Wizards owner Abe Pollin has agreed to the “major economic terms” of the deal. According to an Associated Press source, the team and the arena are valued at a little more than $550 million.