Beyoncé, Rihanna, Ciara are all up for the Best Female R&B Pop Artist at the 2015 BET Awards nominees. Other nominess include Nicki Minaj (Best Female Hip Hop Artist), Usher and Chris Brown (Best Male R&B Pop Artist), and Kendrick Lamar and Common for Best Male Hip Hop Artist. [BET]
Though Jay Z and Beyonce have been notoriously quiet throughout the Black Lives Matter movement, writer/activist Dream Hampton is now claiming that Jay posted bail for dozens of Baltimore protestors who were arrested during the Freddie Gray demonstrations. Actions speak louder than words, right? [Yahoo]
The Queen Bee is returning to reality TV. The rapper posted her announcement on Youtube last week, saying the world “needs a Black Kardashian.” [Vibe]
First Kanye, now Common! The “Glory” rapper just received his honorary doctorate from Winston-Salem State University over the weekend. “I just have to say that this is one of the best days of my life—to get thish nor from you all and for what it’s for,” Dr. Common said to the graduates at the ceremony. “The spirit that you all bring right now, I just want to say go out and change the world. We all have got it in us. Go out and change the world.” [The Hollywood Reporter]
Will it ever end? One year after homeless mother Shanesha Taylor was arrested for leaving her children in a car while she went to a job interview, a judge sentenced her to 18 years of probation. A judge also ordered the 35-year-old mother to attend parenting classes and a program for domestic violence offenders. [Arizona Central]
NYC has another lawsuit on its hands, and this time, it’s from Al Sharpton’s daughter. 28-year-old Dominique Sharpton is suing the city for a whopping $5 million she fell in the street last October and sprained her ankle. Citing physical pain and bodily inures in her lawsuit, Sharpton is seeking damages for “loss of quality of life, future pain, medical bills and future diminution of income.” Her claims aren’t entirely unwarranted: Last year, a woman won a $2.25 million lawsuit against the city after injuring her ankle on an unrepaired sidewalk. [NY Post]
