Daily Dose
Daily Dose: 4/25/17
Drake to host ‘NBA Awards’ show on TNT
12:08 PMIf you’re looking forward to the NFL draft, you might be happy to know that we’ll be filling in for Bomani Jones on The Right Time on ESPN Radio leading up to the event on Thursday. Should be a fun time.
While you were sleeping, Arkansas executed two men. On the same night, Jack H. Jones Jr. and Marcel Williams were executed just hours apart. The state put another man to death four days ago. Another man is set to be killed this week. Why the sudden flurry? Because the three-drug cocktail that they use for these state acts is expiring, as it’s presented all kinds of problems. As an aside to the barbarism of capital punishment, this thread about the specifics of Williams’ trial is an indictment on exactly how flawed our judicial system can be.
You know who might run for office someday? Chelsea Clinton. You know who might not run for office someday? Chelsea Clinton. But because she is the daughter of a former president, a reasonable number of lazy reporters have decided that she owes them a definitive reply on this matter, as if their concerns are more important than her desires. Things got really predictable yesterday, when multiple dudes on Twitter who cover politics decided to show their behinds about the matter.
Lotta dudes in the media are VERY concerned about whether Chelsea Clinton will run for office and they WANT HER TO KNOW ABOUT IT pic.twitter.com/ic3Pl7h5Na
— Brandon Friedman (@BFriedmanDC) April 25, 2017
Here’s a tale of two police forces. One is in Grand Rapids, Michigan, where, after hearing that a group “fit the description,” officers decided to pull out their guns on a group of children headed home from a community center. I need not point out that these kids were black. The video from the body cams is terrifying, and the extremely condescending explanation to one of the mothers is even worse. Then, there’s the right way to handle a matter. Checking out a noise disturbance? Show up, then dance if you like the music. Great job out of this cop.
The NBA is really pushing its postseason awards show. Instead of just releasing the names of the winners after the regular season like other leagues, allowing teams and fans to celebrate with the victors while they’re still actually playing basketball, the NBA decided that a whole awards show is a better idea. It’ll obviously be a TNT production with the usual cast of characters, but now they’ve got a celebrity host. If it takes you more than one guess, you haven’t been paying attention. Obviously, it’s Drake.
Free Food
Coffee Break: I don’t use SheaMoisture products, but I know what they are. So when I saw that new ad they have about hair hate, or whatever they’re calling it, it was extremely cringeworthy and obviously offensive to their core. They caught all the backlash and apologized, and now people are understanding the value of black dollars.
Snack Time: Kendrick Lamar is clearly all the rage these days, and deservedly so. But are you just a casual KDot fan or a real Kung Fu Kenny stan? Take this quiz to figure out how well you know Kendrick Lamar.
Dessert: Here’s a beat tape fresh off the bandwidth to get you through the day.
Daily Dose
Daily Dose: 4/24/17
Should we remove Confederate statues? New Orleans says yes
1:47 PMIt was a busy weekend. I was on Outside The Lines on Friday, and we discussed the New England Patriots at the White House, Serena Williams, U.S. women’s national soccer team’s Mallory Pugh and MLB umpires. And, per usual, The Morning Roast was a blast.
To be the president of the United States of America, you’ve got to be sharp. There are so many things to handle that any outside distractions or lack of concentration can mean bad news for the rest of the world, which depends on that stability. So when the commander in chief sits down with The Associated Press and says a bunch of things that are rambling, illogical and not really making sense, there’s reason for pause. Also, because a lot of it was unintelligible. Also, I had no idea that President Barack Obama did this when it came to the Oval Office.
“Better you than me,” President Trump says when Peggy Whitman tells him they are purifying urine for drinking water https://t.co/xpa4Zphn2P
— Deena Zeina Zaru (@Deena_CNN) April 24, 2017
How should we celebrate our history? Is it by removing all the scars and thus possibly risking erasure of a time that, though horrible, still existed? Or do we leave standing symbols of hate, oppression, discrimination and inequality to teach us that we were once an awful place and we should never forget that? That has the alternate effect, however, of normalizing the existence of very harmful cultural norms. Well, New Orleans is taking the former stance and tearing statues down. Meanwhile, states are recognizing Confederate Memorial Day.
It appears ISIS has won. They are tearing down historical monuments in New Orleans now too. It must end. Despicable!https://t.co/hrO0cLozos
— Corey Stewart (@CoreyStewartVA) April 24, 2017
As a kid, I watched a lot of cartoons. I was one of those children who had a television as a baby sitter, so quite a few were on my radar, going back decades. But because characters are typically not humans, there’s always a way to interpret who they are through race that will be singular to each person. Of course, depending on who voices them, you’ll feel differently about their identity. But most of the best are black. This story manages to break that down but somehow manages to leave out Hong Kong Phooey and Panthro from ThunderCats.
Fred Hoiberg picked a really odd time to voice his concerns. After the Boston Celtics beat the Chicago Bulls to tie the series up Sunday, the Chicago head coach tried to say that Isaiah Thomas, and basically the whole way he plays, is illegal. Sounding like an extremely old white guy, he basically said that IT4 is impossible to guard if he’s cheating. Mind you, for one, we’re still only a week away from the death of Thomas’ younger sister. Also, what league has Hoiberg been watching his whole life? This is how people play basketball now, Fred. Sorry not sorry.
Free Food
Coffee Break: Some folks have no home training and will do anything to win. So when this jerk decided to hit a little kid in an arena timeout game to gain an advantage, the Utah Jazz mascot decided to take matters into his own hands. The dude got everything he deserved and lost the race, to boot.
Adult @LAClippers fan is a dick to kid in fun quarter-time race.@utahjazz mascot DEE-STROYS him.
Kid wins race.#NBAPlayoffs2017 pic.twitter.com/aDlYQwdISR
— Jon Healy (@JonHealy) April 24, 2017
Snack Time: Every time I see Baylor’s name in a headline that doesn’t have a score, I just assume something bad has happened. Now, a guy who supports former football coach Art Briles is trying to rebrand himself. Gross.
Dessert: Y’all can have your promposals. This dress is as woke as it gets.
Daily Dose: 4/21/17
A shooting death last night on the campus of NC A&T
1:00 PMClinton Yates is not here today. He’s hard at work on a $500 device that puts milk in your cereal. Take that, Juicero.
There was a fatal shooting at North Carolina A&T on Thursday night. Campus police said a female visitor at the historically black university was approached by an armed man at one of the school’s residence halls, and after a struggle the gun was discharged. The woman wasn’t shot, but once officers responded to the area they found another man suffering from a gunshot wound. He later died at a local hospital. There’s not a lot of information out at the moment, but this was reportedly the third fatal shooting in Greensboro over the past 24 hours and the third shooting-related death involving NC A&T in the past six months.
(Update: the Greensboro Police Department have stated the man who was killed was not an NC A&T student. The shooter has still not been identified.)
The NBA playoffs continued last night. Indiana Pacers guard Lance Stephenson was back doing Lance Stephenson things, and Paul George scored 36 points — but LeBron James showed who’s owned the playoffs the past six seasons, bringing the Cleveland Cavaliers back from a history-making 25-point halftime deficit to go up 3-0 in the series. The Memphis Grizzlies snapped a 10-game postseason losing streak against the San Antonio Spurs, and Milwaukee Bucks forward Giannis Antetokounmpo blocked a shot WITH HIS ELBOW!
It’s been one year since the death of Prince. This time last year, the world was shocked when TMZ broke the news that the 57-year-old singer’s body was found at his Paisley Park compound in Chanhassen, Minnesota. Since that time, there have been moving tributes — from Bilal at the BET Awards, as well as Bruno Mars and Morris Day and the Time at the Grammys — mass re-viewings of 1984’s Purple Rain and, of course, controversy. A former Prince producer tried to release an unauthorized new album for the anniversary, but the singer’s estate scuttled that in court earlier this week. The New York Times reported recently that Prince concealed his painkiller addiction by “mixing various prescription pills in bottles for everyday products like Bayer and Aleve.” Nevertheless, The Undefeated is celebrating The Purple One all day.
Quick notes:
1. If you haven’t come across it yet, writer Ijeoma Oluo Ethered/SHEthered/Takeovered/Hit Em Uped Rachel Dolezal.
2. The NFL schedule was released last night. Sixteen teams will play 16 other teams. It doesn’t matter in April.
3. The entire city of Wyoming, Minnesota, might be high. From the police department setting “#420” traps on Thursday to this local man who narced on his own wife because he thought her cocktail straw was drugs.
Daily Dose
Daily Dose: 4/20/17
Today’s the day for everyone to make their weed jokes
1:33 PMThe great Domonique Foxworth graced us with his presence for the podcast Wednesday, which is fun. We talked about Kendrick Lamar and Carmelo Anthony’s situation, and Terrika Foster-Brasby talked to Alabama’s Jonathan Allen.
Today is April 20, one of the strangest days on the calendar. The Today in History for this date has tons of strange occurrences, as well as celebrity birthdays. It’s also the unofficial marijuana holiday of the year, a trend that in recent years has grown exponentially. Basically, you can expect to be reading about weed all day. That said, here’s an update on what the laws are around the country these days. Also, a bunch of people plan on smoking outside the Capitol Thursday afternoon, if you want to check that out.
Charlie Murphy’s death is still sad. Over the past couple of days, looking back on his work has been a real blessing. His role as a connective tissue between big-time Hollywood through his brother, Eddie, and the grinding comedian world with his stand-up work is remarkable to think about. So when he was finally laid to rest, the people who came out in support were quite the talented bunch. I owe a lot to him personally, for motivating me to be myself on a microphone. Rest in peace, Charlie.
Update from the hip-hop nostalgia train: We’ve got a couple of big projects in the works. First, Dame Dash has announced that he’s working on a biopic about Roc-A-Fella Records, which COULD be cool, except for one big problem — Jay Z. Something tells us that he might not exactly see eye to eye on how this story goes. On a less feudy front, a new podcast is launching next week that will tell the story of Chris Lighty, the music executive who was so instrumental to the rap game. It’s called Mogul.
David Fizdale is a legend in the game. With one news conference, he let the world know that he is not to be toyed with on any level, regardless of whether he’s a rookie coach. You’ll be hearing the phrase “How’s that for data?” for the rest of your sports fanhood life, trust me. But he also got popped for $30K for being so forthright about what he thought was unfair treatment by the officials. Luckily for the Memphis Grizzlies head coach, his squad has his back. Point guard Mike Conley says that they’ll pay his fine for him.
Free Food
Coffee Break: If you’ve ever found yourself wondering what would happen if Mike Tyson and Migos found themselves in the same place, you’re in luck. GQ decided to put them together and let the former boxer give the rappers a tour of his mansion. It goes exactly how you think it would.
Snack Time: You know what’s a good idea? Uber for haircuts. There was a time when having a barber on demand was only a luxury for the rich. Now, there’s an app for that.
Dessert: It’s official: Bill O’Reilly is out the paint. But he will get big bucks on his fall.