Daily Dose
Daily Dose: 7/24/17
‘Girls Trip’ excels at box office over the weekend
12:55 PMWe’re still in the dog days of summer, and it feels like it’s never going to end. But HBO’s Insecure is back, which means the Twitter timeline is going crazy. The Morning Roast was also an NFL takeover, although we did talk a lot of hoops too.
I'm going to crowdsource this, then write about it. When you hear 'minority' do you primarily associate it with 'persecuted' or 'subverted'?
— Fungo Velo (@clintonyates) July 24, 2017
One of my heroes died Saturday. After a short battle with cancer, the man who exuded cool and was the pride and joy of black Washington, Jim Vance, passed at the age of 75. He was a reporter and news anchor at NBC4 in D.C. for nearly 50 years, which is much longer than I’ve been on this earth. Even though we suspected it would be soon, this news hit many people, not just in the news industry but also around the community in general, extremely hard. Vance was our rock, our soothing voice, our stalwart. When I heard the news, I poured my heart out.
You could call it palace intrigue, but alas, there is no king. The week in politics has started off with a bang, and President Donald Trump’s son-in-law, Jared Kushner, is saying publicly that he did not collude with Russia in any way. Meanwhile, Attorney General Jeff Sessions, who many people think is likely on his way out of that job, actually was called “beleaguered” by the president, which is about as weird as it gets. He picked Sessions, mind you. Let’s not forget that Trump’s lawyer is also insinuating that the president might actually pardon himself in this situation. Yikes.
It’s amazing what happens when you make a movie with black women, apparently. Turns out, tons of people go to see it. This is still news in Hollywood, but Girls Trip did an incredible job at the box office this weekend for its opener, to the tune of $30M, which is no small matter. It came in second in the country, and I can’t imagine it will slow down too much, considering how topical it is as a summer film. It’s also worth noting that the film’s director, Malcolm D. Lee, just signed a first-look deal with Universal, so make sure to watch his space.
The Conor McGregor/Floyd Mayweather fight has reached peak ridiculous. Draymond Green, as in of the Golden State Warriors, decided he was going to take a shot at McGregor via Instagram, which tells me that Dray has a little too much time on his hands this summer. But because McGregor is never one to back down from a fight, no matter how petty, he jumped into the comments and fired back at Green, saying that he was rocking a C.J. Watson jersey in fact, which is basically the weakest comeback ever. This bout can’t be over soon enough.
Free Food
Coffee Break: The things that happen in American prisons, as a matter of course, are typically pretty unspeakable. Between prisoner abuse, overcrowding and our general predilection toward locking people up forever, it’s bad. Now, a jail in Tennessee is offering vasectomies for reduced prison time. This is not OK.
Snack Time: I love a good carbonara. Simple, elegant and delicious without being overpowered with flavors that are doing too much. But this recipe? Well, it caused some controversy.
Dessert: I don’t want nor need to know what Fat Joe is going for here, but it will always be hilarious to me.
https://twitter.com/TatyanaJenene/status/888542823582138368/video/1
Daily Dose
Daily Dose: 7/21/17
Minneapolis marches for Justine Damond
10:58 AMWhat’s up, gang? I’ll be on Outside the Lines on Friday at 1 p.m., if you want to tune in. It’s the Friday Four panel, so it should be a good time. Clearly, there’s quite a bit to talk about.
Top 5 black TV shows:
1. Roc
2. Fresh Prince
3. Different World
4. Living Single
5. Those 3 episodes of South Central.— Joel D. Anderson (@byjoelanderson) July 20, 2017
The murder of Justine Damond was pointless, scary and problematic. We’ve heard the story a million times before. An officer was scared and in such fear that he shot and killed an innocent, unarmed person. Often, it’s a white officer shooting a black person. In this case, roles were reversed and a lot of people are suddenly paying a lot more attention to the injustice because Damond doesn’t look like, say, Philando Castile. That includes the man who represents both families in court, which tells you all you need to know about black lives in the U.S.
Being a black woman in Hollywood isn’t easy. Landing lead roles is just not something that happens. In addition, when you do land one, the industry typically wants to put you in a support role and expects you to act a certain way. There’s not a whole ton of room in a major motion picture for, say, a black woman who’s bookish and quiet. And for women in comedic roles, it’s a whole other ballgame. The Los Angeles Times talked to 18 black female comics about how old stereotypes are still affecting casting decisions.
Margaritas are a perfect summer drink. You’ve got a solid amount of citrus and enough salt to keep your taste buds moving, and you can even go the slushy route if you so choose. But margs can be quite dangerous, as we all know that tequila can be rather sneaky. Not to mention that there are a thousand different ways to make one and, depending on where you are, you’ll get a different combo. But because the folks down at FiveThirtyEight are doing the Lord’s work, they figured out the perfect recipe. You know, for science, or something.
Derrick Rose might find another NBA home. And it might be LeBron James’. Frankly, this is shocking on quite a few levels, as the point guard hasn’t really been a player of impact for some time in the league, not to mention the fact that he went through a rather ugly court case in the interim. But the Cleveland Cavaliers need a backup point guard, and if Rose can find his old form, he could be a solid addition to the Eastern Conference champions. Apparently the Los Angeles Lakers are interested too, which makes even less sense to me.
Free Food
Coffee Break: First, it was an all-encompassing Star Wars hotel that might be too much even for diehard fans like me. Now, Disney is creating a Marvel hotel, which is guaranteed to be a monster hit. It’ll be at Disneyland Paris, which I’ve been to, and is definitely pretty cool.
Snack Time: The Hundreds is a streetwear brand that I’ve been a fan of for a long time. But they’re a whole lot more than just T-shirts. This interview with Bobby Hundreds about how he built his empire is fascinating.
Dessert: NAV & Metro Boomin’s new heat is out, just in time for the weekend.
All Day
Twitter reacts to O.J. Simpson’s parole hearing
His released was expected, but many were still surprised
6:12 PMWhen it comes to long prison stints, the passage of time and thus acceleration of technology are a fascinating way to measure just how isolating incarceration can be. Now that O.J. Simpson will be freed later this year after he was granted parole by the Nevada Board of Parole, I wonder if he even will understand what Twitter is.
Because between his attitude in court, the jovial tone with which he took the proceedings and insistence that he’s still done nothing wrong, he’s clearly still living in a world that revolves around O.J. Nonetheless, the Twitterbox had these jokes.
"Sir, OJ Simpson is downstairs. He says he wants to talk about the album" pic.twitter.com/LJV0JT1ITo
— Sam F. (@Sammyveli) July 20, 2017
Jay-Z’s “The Story of O.J.” is arguably the most impactful song, with certainly the most poignant video we’ve seen in a while. But the opening line — “I’m not black, I’m O.J. … OK?” — was probably not something that Shawn Carter thought he might end up explaining to the man himself someday.
Curious to see which cabinet position #OJSimpson will hold…
— NameTK (@RealNameTK) July 20, 2017
Congrats to our new Attorney General OJ Simpson
— Dave Zirin (@EdgeofSports) July 20, 2017
Shudder.
A Kansas City Chiefs tie, though? pic.twitter.com/eV2SQDXp71
— Michael Lee (@MrMichaelLee) July 20, 2017
Seriously, this was really bizarre. If I’m O.J., I know this guy is voting for me to be free. Why would you be wearing a Chiefs tie, when you live in Nevada, in July, if you weren’t trying to show some solidarity through football?
OJ Simpson is granted parole in October and Ford will start making the bronco again. Coincidence? I think not…
— Blue Eyed Beauty (@blue_eyedbeaut_) July 20, 2017
To be fair, these were very cool trucks that got ruined by the most famous police pursuit in American history. I’d drive one, no doubt about it.
https://twitter.com/DJPaMCMa/status/888131260559785985
The thing is, a lot of people like O.J. He was good on TV and judging from what we tuned into Thursday, he still is. And in today’s media market, someone’s going to pay him big money just to see what his life is like on a day-to-day basis. There’s really no reason besides decent taste to believe that he won’t be on television again soon. He’s got to make money somehow, he owes people for his role in the double-murder.
OJ Simpson drinks champagne and transforms into Mimosa Simpson.
— Evan J'daté Kessler (@EvanJKessler) July 20, 2017
Golf clap.
Calling it now: #OJSimpson will be affiliated with Big Baller Brand in some way by 2018.
— Evan Kirby (@Evan_Kirby) July 20, 2017
I can see it now. OJ Simpson draped in Big Baller Brand gear and Lonzo sliders laughing it up with LaVar live at a Laker game this Fall!
— Not Bill Walton (@NotBillWalton) July 20, 2017
Quite a few people touched on this joke, but LaVar Ball can’t be that stupid. Say what you want about his attitude and strategy, dude is still from Los Angeles and knows that his life’s work will go up in smoke if he gets affiliated with Simpson.
OJ's atty looks like the type of dude you wind up sharing a VIP wristband with even though he bragged for weeks he had the plug for two.
— Jemele Hill (@jemelehill) July 20, 2017
Don’t even get me started on that guy. He was all over the place, didn’t seem to have any solid preparation or plan, but somehow it worked.
https://twitter.com/RealLifeKaz/status/888118239250661376
And this is ultimately the main point: He is still a draw, even if it’s for macabre reasons. It’ll be fascinating to see where the third chapter of his life takes him. This is the monster his first trial created. Now we apparently have to let it roam the hillside, also known as Florida.
Daily Dose
Daily Dose: 7/20/17
The nation’s eyes are on O.J. Simpson yet again
1:26 PMSometimes you wake up in the morning and you can feel a crazy news day in your bones. At least at this stage of my life I can. Thursday is going to be one of those days, I think.
https://twitter.com/WeNotSocks/status/888017406924390400
So, where to start with the president. First off, there was the interview with The New York Times. Rambling doesn’t even begin to describe how all over the place that conversation was, just on balance. Then he said he would have never hired Attorney General Jeff Sessions if he knew he’d recuse himself from the Russia investigation, which is a staggering admission. There’s also a story circulating that the White House is using funds designed to promote the Affordable Care Act to denigrate it.
O.J. Simpson is legitimately back in the news. We all knew this was coming, but it’s somehow still surreal to think that we’re going to be looking at Orenthal, once again, in a courtroom, rapt to find out what his fate will be. It clearly won’t have the same social impact as The Verdict, but this is straight-up huge news across every network. This scenario is obviously opening up some very old wounds for a lot of people, so whatever the parole verdict may be, it will be extremely emotional.
Some ideas are so misguided that you often wonder how they got so far. Such is the case over at HBO, where apparently the adapters of Game of Thrones are going to create another show called Confederate. And it sounds like it plans to be exactly what you might imagine: a world in which slavery is still legal and the South succeeded in breaking away. We need not point out how instantly awful this might become. But the risk of letting someone run wild with an ahistorical reimagining of our past is just one that few of us will trust, overall.
If HBO wants a series about the Civil War so bad, here's an idea – PICK UP UNDERGROUND.
— ReBecca Theodore-Vachon (@FilmFatale_NYC) July 19, 2017
In the past five years, the NBA has made real efforts to expand its footprint globally. Since the Dream Team in the 1992 Summer Olympics in Barcelona, Spain, the league’s popularity has blown up and the league continues to push. The NBA Africa Game, a matchup that began in 2015, takes place Aug. 5. Now they’re heading to one of the biggest nations on Earth: India. The Golden State Warriors’ Kevin Durant will be the face of that tour. While there isn’t a full game yet, he will be holding camp and basically acting as an ambassador. Very cool.
Free Food
Coffee Break: I don’t typically freak out over every single leaked still shot from a set or makeup room, but in the case of Star Wars, I’ll make an exception. We’ve finally got a visual of Donald Glover playing a young Lando Calrissian, which is a very tough role to tackle for so many reasons, namely Billy Dee Williams.
Snack Time: Speaking of bad ideas, Atari is putting out a new product that puts speakers in the bill of a baseball cap, meaning the notion of private listening on, say, public transportation is one step closer to complete oblivion.
Dessert: This song blew me away.
All Day Podcast
All Day Podcast: 7/20/17
A trip to Minneapolis for the X Games
10:25 AM[wpvideo zDF8l69A]
Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | RSS | Embed
Your boy took a trip to Minneapolis last week and had a blast. We were there for the X Games, and I had the pleasure of hosting a couple of ESPN Radio shows while in town, which was fun too. U.S. Bank Stadium is quite the facility and certainly made a monster impact on the vibe of the event, in a great way. That place is beautiful.
As for the week, I went to the top of an 82-foot ramp, roamed the entire event and even got to see the bowels of the operation that gave an interesting perspective on how everyone interacted off the field. The sheer number of people involved in the undertaking was pretty staggering.
Outside of that, I caught up with Gary Rogers, whom you may remember from Skateline NBD, the best skate slash whatever show on the internet for my money. He was super chill, and ahead of his stint as a skateboard analyst for the telecast we got to meet and talk about the entire experience for him. For a dude from The Bay who really just loves to skate, he was having a great time.
After that, out at X Fest, there were tents galore with activities, giveaways and experiences of all sorts. There were skateparks for kids to hit and also an outdoor bar if you wanted suds. Across the plaza from there, I met Mark Rivard, an artist and educator who works with kids in Minneapolis. He paints and draws on skateboards and uses art the fun way to enrich lives.
In his booth, the works of his students were on display, coupled with drawing stations for anyone who wanted to get creative. We chatted about art, the event coming to his home state and his experience working with kids. I was a fan, and you can find more of his work on site at #doradthings.
Students from @TheFAIRSchool have their skateboard art displayed at the X Games! #doradthings pic.twitter.com/NUNWC5XkK0
— Dirk Tedmon (@DirkTedmon) July 15, 2017
Lastly, Russell Westbrook. The NBA MVP showed up on the Sports Illustrated red carpet rocking a T-shirt that says “Fight Racism,” a relatively benign but still rather forward statement. Westbrook isn’t just any ordinary basketball star, though. He’s also a fashion icon, so his message goes a little further than most. That’s a good thing, if you’re wondering.
It was a long trip but a fruitful one. Enjoy!
Photo by Clinton Yates/The Undefeated
Daily Dose
Daily Dose: 7/19/17
Russell Westbrook rocks ‘Fight Racism’ shirt
3:03 PMI’ve got a new podcast coming out later Wednesday, and it’ll be a review of my time in Minneapolis. Unfortunately, that town is back in the news because of another police shooting, this time involving a yogi who was shot and killed.
found this the other day pic.twitter.com/rYi6vVtMRT
— fee nom (@PHNM) July 19, 2017
Russell Westbrook has been making fashion statements for a long time. But Tuesday night at Sports Illustrated‘s Fashionable 50 event, the Oklahoma City Thunder guard presented a larger message than just “look at me.” He wore a T-shirt that says “Fight Racism” on the red carpet, and he’s the cover boy. It’ll be interesting to see how this flies in the state he plays in, as opposed to the city he’s from and lives in, Los Angeles. To be clear, Westbrook also likes the way it looks. Obviously.
The president of the United States has a sidepiece. He happens to be the president of Russia. And like in many covert relationships, because he’s not being honest about it, the rest of his world is becoming more difficult to maintain. As it turns out, there were actually a whole lot of people in that Trump Tower meeting that his son had with a Russian lawyer, and the number appears to be going up. Also, the president apparently decided to have a separate meeting with Vladimir Putin and his interpreter at the G-20 summit.
If you don’t know, O.J. Simpson has a parole hearing coming up Thursday. If you’ve forgotten, he’s in prison for a crime completely unrelated to the murders of his ex-wife and her friend. He’s been locked up for pulling a gun on two guys over some memorabilia of his in Las Vegas. Simpson has been incarcerated for nine years, and there are people who believe that he’s likely to get out. I’m infinitely fascinated with what will be the third chapter of Simpson’s life and what he’ll be like if he is freed.
Magic Johnson is extremely high on Lonzo Ball. Ever since the rookie was named MVP of the Las Vegas Summer League and his team won the title, Johnson’s been proved right to an extent. Mind you, Magic was hyping homeboy immediately after the draft, so this is nothing new. And we thought LaVar Ball had a lot to say. Now, the Lakers’ president of basketball operations says those triple-doubles will be coming quite frequently in the regular season too. There’s no question that they’ll be fun to watch next season.
Free Food
Coffee Break: It never ceases to amaze me how many people the Kardashians are connected to in one way or another. It’s part of the reason that I call them America’s greatest television family. Turns out, the doctor who delivered Beyoncé’s babies is also the Kardashian deliverer, and even delivered Kim herself.
Snack Time: Rae Sremmurd are in the prime of their careers. Hit songs, great videos, sold-out shows. Now they’ve got a comic book featuring their likeness coming to fruition. It’s supposed to hit shelves in October.
Dessert: For whatever reason, I love the A$AP Rocky/Lana Del Rey relationship. They’ve got two new songs.
Daily Dose
Daily Dose: 7/18/17
Michael Vick has some advice for Colin Kaepernick
1:55 PMI’m finally back home for more than a day, and I’m very happy about that. On Monday I was on The Ryen Russillo Show, and it was an excellent experience. If you want to hear the show, here you go. Hour 1, Hour 2, Hour 3.
40 Under 40: Sports Media Talents https://t.co/9kvw6R53eI
— The Big Lead (@thebiglead) July 18, 2017
Well, it looks like the latest health care plan has fallen apart, again. The goal of trying to keep America healthy has turned into a political battle that’s genuinely embarrassing on a global level. The GOP’s effort to repeal Obamacare fell short, again, because they didn’t have the votes. This fact apparently caught the White House off guard, which is bizarre, as everyone paying attention knew this wasn’t going to work. Now, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell is calling for a repeal of the whole thing, with absolutely zero plan to replace it. What a mess.
Michael Vick, we didn’t think it’d be you. The former NFL quarterback, who knows a thing or two about image rehabilitation, went on television and gave some advice to Colin Kaepernick on how he might be able to get back in the league’s good graces. He told him to cut his hair. Without getting into a whole rant about how black hair is unfairly weaponized in America, I’ll just say this: Kaepernick’s hair is too important to cut at this point. Should it matter? No. But yes, alas, it does. Damien Woody was not a fan of Vick’s suggestion.
Summer is weird. While the weather is warm, and there’s a sense of elongated laziness and carefree mentality that people enjoy, there can also be a huge downside: depression. Why? Mainly because if you don’t have your life together and are forced to watch everybody else having fun in their seasonal happiness, it can wear on you. But there’s also a physical reason. As it turns out, too much light can negatively affect your body, never mind the actual temperature of the air. The dog days are for real.
Ezekiel Elliott is living his life. The star Dallas Cowboys running back seems to be in the headlines for one thing or another all the time, and it might end up costing him some cash. During the week he was supposed to meet with the NFL about how his offseason has gone, but he ended up getting into an altercation at a nightclub, which just isn’t a good look. Now he’s trying to appeal a speeding ticket. At this point it’s pretty clear the NFL is going to sit him down, even if it’s just for his own good.
Free Food
Coffee Break: I know you all love Game of Thrones. I don’t watch that show, but it’s not personal, it’s just not for me. I’m a robots-and-lasers guy, not a wizards-and-woods guy, but with the season premiere having just dropped, people are back at it. One question though: Where are all the black folks in this HBO series?
Snack Time: The Magic School Bus was a series of books that as a kid I didn’t admit that I liked, but I genuinely loved. Now it appears that Tracee Ellis Ross will play Mrs. Frizzle in a live-action version adaptation. Amazing.
Dessert: Some things you just can’t make up, kiddos.
The Bachelorette
‘Bachelorette’ recap: Leave the family therapy to Dr. Phil
Dean’s family visit was the most cringeworthy moment of the whole season
11:32 AMHometown visits are great because they provide a great dose of reality — a nice break from reality TV. Some really organic moments happened Monday night, like this one. I love black people so much:
That moment when… well, anything great happens. 😊#TheBachelorette pic.twitter.com/nFg83iuRnv
— The Bachelorette (@BacheloretteABC) July 18, 2017
Eric’s family visit was a great way to highlight the monolithic black community trope and smash it. Eric and Rachel are from two completely different backgrounds, and that was showcased last night in a really authentic way. For example, Eric’s seamless code-switching. Eric took Rachel to the decidedly rougher side of Baltimore, but there was nothing rough about this family visit. Sure, there were some unresolved parental issues (“A lot of men don’t reach for the stars because they reach for the thing next to them: their mother,” is a nice way of saying sorry I never hugged you as a child. Not.) But it was presented correctly. It didn’t turn into a whole therapy session. Maybe it did, but Rachel — and America — were shielded from the more private moments. It’s too bad that Eric isn’t going to win (I think), because his family is an absolute gem.
Give Eric's family their own damn show. Like if Rachel doesn't pick him, give him a show where they help him find a woman. #TheBachelorette
— Janet Mock (@janetmock) July 18, 2017
Bryan’s family though … not so much. It’s not that his family is awful, but his mom was laying it on pretty thick — we get it, he’s your baby, your pride and joy, your precious, blah, blah, blah.
Rachel's laughing but something tells me Bryan's mom is dead serious about killing her #TheBachelorette
— Tierra R. Wilkins (@Yerraaa) July 18, 2017
But family aside, we still don’t know the real Bryan. He’s going to win, I can feel it in my bones. But Bryan, who are you, and why do you like Rachel? When his mom asked him about what he likes about Rachel, he kept it painfully generic. Bryan is in it to win it, but that may come back to hurt him in the long run. He’s been so focused on the hunt, he hasn’t taken time to bare his soul or connect with Rachel on a deeper level. All they do is make out, and I’m sick of it!
Dear Rachel,
Peter is life. Don't mess this up with wanting a proposal immediately.Sincerely,
The world #TheBachelorette— Shan (@shani_brewsy) July 18, 2017
On to Peter, Rachel’s true love. Unlike Bryan, Peter is taking his time, and his honesty is making Bachelor nation weep into their wineglasses all across America. Peter isn’t putting on any airs about falling in love or getting down on one knee. Gap-toothed bae is taking his time. Rachel, girl, I’m gonna need you to slow your roll and realize what you’ve got in your hands. He’s got a great, normal family. He’s great with kids. And he’s graying better than George Clooney ever could. I wish more seasons of The Bachelor/ette ended like every other dating show: with a date! A real date! A strongly worded commitment, even! But no, Rachel wants a husband.
https://twitter.com/PrincessProbz/status/887115822841421829
Remember how Eric’s family issues were edited wonderfully? Well, Dean’s hometown visit was the exact opposite. What a mess for everyone involved. Another shining example of the rather embarrassing job the editors have done this season. Dean has unresolved issues with his dad and is arguably even more stressed about the visit than Rachel is. Having grown up in a stable two-parent household, Rachel doesn’t seem to get it. Poor Dean was forced to rehash his father’s absenteeism on national television in what was the most uncomfortable 10 minutes in the history of the show.
Why are they showing this. This is a very private conversation that does not need to be shown& has nothing to do w the show #TheBachelorette
— Larissa Harsh (@MissLariss10) July 18, 2017
ABC we can fight for making dean go through this for publicity #TheBachelorette pic.twitter.com/qxmgSM8E5H
— ray (@itbray) July 18, 2017
And on top of that, he went home! After Rachel said she’s falling for him (and nobody else)! The fact that Dean and his father didn’t hug it out clearly fell short of Rachel’s expectations, because, again, she doesn’t get it. Not everyone has to be BFFs with their parents, Rach. It sucks that Dean had to pay the price, but right now Rachel is focused on clearing the way for Bryan to win, so y’all gotta go at some point.