New year, same pandemic! Closing out the first week of the year 2022—though it feels like an extension of 2021 with the loss of Sidney Poitier—there is still so much to look forward to. As announcements of new shows, books, goals, ventures, and babies, rolled in, you might have been too distracted to catch it all. So, here’s a few things you might have missed this week.
1. Saturday Night Live Is Back In 2022 With Ariana DeBose and Roddy Ricch
Looks like the longest running sketch comedy series is back. Saturday Night Live took a lot of hits in the beginning of the pandemic, but miraculously pushed through, broadcasting sketches from cast members’ homes. However, SNL’s Holiday episode hosted by Paul Rudd was cancelled due to the Omicron variant surge. Hobbling along into the second leg of its 47th season, SNL returns later this month on January 15 with first time appearances from West Side Story’s Ariana DeBose as host and Roddy Ricch as the musical guest.
2. And The Winner Is… ?
Speaking of taking hits, award season is looking shaky again too. This week, it was announced the 64th Annual GRAMMY Awards Show scheduled for January 31 was postponed. In a joint statement from CBS and the Recording Academy, the Covid surge “contains too many risks.” The Golden Globes, however, is still on, but will be a completely private affair. Viewers will receive winner updates via Twitter. It will not be live-streamed. But that’s not due to Covid. Earlier in 2021, NBC released a statement that the 2022 Golden Globes would not air after backlash of many snubs from critically-acclaimed Black productions like HBO’s Lovecraft Country and Judas and the Black Messiah. With hopes of reform, the network’s statement said “Assuming the organization executes on its plan, we are hopeful we will be in a position to air the show in January 2023.”
3. Rihanna Teases New SAVAGE X FENTY Store
In a rare appearance on Instagram, Rihanna updated her 116 million followers that she had a whole new experience for them. No, it’s still not a new album. The 33-year-old singer-turned-billionaire business mogul posted an image of a Savage X Fenty store to announce she’s launching in Las Vegas, Los Angeles, Houston, Philadelphia, and Washington, D.C.
4. January 6th Is Unofficially Eugene Goodman Day
January 6, marked the one year anniversary to the Capitol Riot. While much of the coverage from big media outlets focused on reactions from the Democrats (Dick and Liz Cheney were the only Republicans present) and Capitol staff and officers, Americans deserved an update from Officer Eugene Goodman. Video footage showed that Officer Goodman, single-handedly, distracted the mob of rioters away from government officials by leading them in the opposite direction. Other footage showed him redirecting Sen. Mitt Romney away from the mob as well. As Officer Eugene Goodman still works at the Capitol, we continue to celebrate him as an American hero.
5. Coko Trapped On Interstate For Hours
Hundreds of people were stranded on Interstate 95 in Northern Virginia due to dangerous road conditions from a winter storm. SWV songstress, Coko was among the many. She took to Instagram and shared a few photos of the traffic, captioned, “Yesterday I was stuck on I95 north for 9.5 hours!” The “Weak” singer and her son were grateful to make it safely to a hotel, with only a slightly damaged vehicle.
6. A Rare Short Story By Toni Morrison To Be Republished
Readers will have one more reason to love the late literary giant Toni Morrison. On February 1, a short story called “Recitatif” written and published by Morrison in 1983 will be republished. The rarely seen work, tells of a series of encounters between Roberta and Twyla, one of whom is Black, the other white, but readers will have to guess which is which. With an introduction from Zadie Smith, literary lovers can look forward to familiar themes in Morrison’s work, like complicated sisterhoods and blurred race lines.
7. Mayor Adams Doesn’t Understand The Level Of Skill To Work In A Pandemic
New York City’s Mayor Eric Adams is off to a rough start. Adams was sworn into office, shortly after the ball dropped at Times Square. In an attempt to get workers back in person at a press conference Adams said “My low-skilled workers, my cooks, my dishwashers, my messengers, my shoe-shine people, those who work at Dunkin’ Donuts—they don’t have the academic skills to sit in the corner office.”
Of course he was met with much backlash, particularly from fellow New Yorker, Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez. She tweeted, “The suggestion that any job is ‘low skill’ is a myth perpetuated by wealthy interests to justify inhumane working conditions.” It’s laughable to insult the very people that the economy’s survival is contingent on.
Comically enough, while trying to clarify, the former cop called AOC the “word police.” He said, “Everyone wants to take every term you use and try to make it seem that you want to be offensive. The term I really wanted [to use] was low-wage workers. Low-wage workers, they can’t telecommute. Let’s be honest.” Needless to say, this is going to be an interesting four years for the city of New York.