Happy Friday!
Steve Harvey’s Mentoring Camp will have a new guest this year: Paula Deen. Harvey invited Deen to take part in the four-day event, that’s geared toward teaching fatherless young men about “personal respsonsibility, dream building and the importance of nutrition and physical fitness.” Deen will bring her Southern-style cooking skills and talented team to the camp to help the young men that are interested in cooking. But it doesn’t end at that. “Paula and her team has agreed to take as many boys as I want to fly down to Savannah [Georgia]…and teach them culinary skills,” said Harvey. “That, to me, is how you get something from something.” And Harvey doesn’t really care about what people think about his relationship with Deen. “I just know the good in her. That’s all I know. And it outweighs the bad by a landslide,” said Harvey. “Now, when you blog about me…can you please type, right after you get through typing, that I don’t give a d**n. Just for me.” [TheGrio]
Even though the NFL has been under a lot of heat lately, Russell Wilson is trying to make a change. The quarterback for the Super Bowl-winning Seattle Seahawks has created a new social media campaign to help victims of domestic violence find safe shelters. Wilson created both a new foundation, Why Not You Foundation, and his Pass the Peace initiatve, to offer shelters support when victims are trying escape domestic violence situations. “I want us to Pass the Peace to support victimcs of domestic violence,” said Wilson. “The idea behind it [Pass the Peace] is simple: It’s a promise. I’m sharing my love for you. I want to take care of you. I am here for you.” [HelloBeautiful]
Tank was arrested Thursday after getting pulled over in L.A. The R&B singer didn’t cooperate with the police after he was caught talking on the phone and driving (which is not accepted in L.A.). He refused to show his driver’s license and was promptly arrested. He was later released from jail and picked up by a friend. [TMZ]
Jennifer Hudson made a big splash on the Billboard charts with her latest album JHud. Debuting at No. 2 on the Top R&B/Hip-Hop chart after selling 24,000 copies in the first week. This is Hudson’s third album and her third time in the No. 2 spot. [Billboard]
LeBron James will be turning his story into motivation for kids. James plans on teaming up with Disney to co-produce a new TV series called Becoming. Not only will his story be on display in the half-hour series, but James will also be telling the journeys of some of today’s top athletes. “Sports and athletes were my inspiration growing up,” said James. “When I learned that they had some of the same struggles and challenges I did, it made everything seem possible. That’s what Becoming is all about.” The show is set to air October 26 on Disney. [TheGrio]
With the debut of I Am Ali right around the corner, (Oct. 10), Muhammad Ali’s daughters got a chance to talk about their father’s health. A recent picture of 72-year-old showed how Parkinson’s has really taken a toll on the champion. “People don’t understand Parkinson’s and they don’t know what it looks like, so when they look at him now…like when he goes out in public sometimes, the press will start stuff, like ‘he’s dying,'” said Maryum Ali. “He wakes up in the morning and that’s when he’s the most fresh,” said his other daughter, Hana. “As the day goes by he gets tired, that’s just one of the side effects of Parkinson’s. But he’s not in pain…other than the fact that he has Parkinson’s, he’s in complete perfect health.” [TheGrio]
According a press release, 12 Years A Slave will be presented with the 2014 Sidney Lumet Award for Integrity in Entertainment. Each year, the Human Rights First award is given to a work of popular culture that puts a pressing human rights issue into the spotlight. Previous winners include 42: The Jackie Robinson Story and TV series Homeland and The Good Wife. The ceremony will take place at the Human Rights First Award dinner on October 22 in New York.