(CNN) YouTube star Nicole Thea has died at the age of 24, along with her unborn baby.
The London-based influencer's family confirmed the news on Sunday in an Instagram post, stating that Thea's unborn son had also died.
"To all Nicole's friends and supporters it is with great sadness that I have to inform you that Nicole and her son she and Boga named Reign sadly passed away on Saturday morning," the statement read. The message explained that Thea had pre-scheduled "a few YouTube videos" to upload on her channel before her death, and her boyfriend, Boga, had "made the decision to allow them to be aired."
The family asked for privacy, saying "our hearts are truly broken and we are struggling to cope with what has happened."
The cause of Thea's death is not yet known. The former dancer was around eight months pregnant.
Thea had amassed more than 80,000 subscribers on her YouTube channel, where she often discussed her pregnancy journey and posted content featuring boyfriend Global Boga -- real name Jeffery Frimpong -- who is a street dancer.
Her most recent video, titled "GOT IN A BATH FULL OF MILK! *BTS PREGNANCY SHOOT," was uploaded on Sunday.
In the 14-minute footage, Thea can be seen getting ready for her milk bath, while talking her followers through the process. She also showcased special moments from her maternity photoshoot.
In this episode of People's Party, Talib Kweli and Jasmin Leigh sit down with comedian, actor, and radio host -- Donnell 'I'm Rich Biaaaaatch!' Rawlings. The hilarity ensues from the jump as Donnell calls out Talib for disrespecting him during a recent comedy event they attended with Dave Chappelle. They go on to discuss Donnell's stand-up philosophy of challenging himself to the fullest with every performance, they dig into the elements that went into creating sketches on Chappelle Show like the all-time classic "Player Hater's Ball," he talks about some of his first appearances on TV with the "Ricki Lake Show," and sneaking onto the the People's Court street camera on the daily. Donnell also reflects on his early days doing stand-up in D.C. where he was born and raised, and what brought him to Brooklyn, New York where he would seek out gigs anywhere he could, until eventually landing a spot on Def Comedy Jam. He gives his thoughts on his stint in the military and then expands on his "go hard or go home" hustler mentality that he's maintained over the years which he credits to his success.
Donnell reflects on how "Chappelle's Show" came to an unforeseen and abrupt ending, coming together with Charlie Murphy and Bill Burr to go on tour afterwards, doing the Lost Episodes without Dave, and his close friendship with Charlie and how much he is missed. Donnell aka "Ashy Larry" also gives his take on Michael Rapaport's comments of Kenya Moore's having ashy ankles, he names his top 5 "Chappelle's Show" sketches, speaks on Wayne Brady's reluctance to say "b*tch" during his sketch, and talks on school kids getting suspended for doing Rick James impersonations. Donnell goes on to explain why it feels like he's going to war when appearing on the Breakfast Club, how he feels about the current state of comedy during COVID, his time working on HBO's "The Wire," his perspective on the notion to defund police, and what he thinks is needed for lasting reform. In closing Talib asks Donnell what he has in store for his fans.
TIMESTAMPS:
2:14 -- Donnell does a mic-check and drops some potent bars on his introduction, then calls out Talib for being disrespectful, which segways into them both reflecting on the "Dave Chappelle & Friends" social distance comedy event in Yellow Springs, Ohio which they both performed at. Talib accuses Donnell of forcing him on stage, and Donnell explains what really went down.
7:40 -- Talib brings up Donnell's quote of "If someone has too many pairs of glasses they're becoming an a*shole". Donnell speaks on elements of his stand-up philosophy in welcoming the challenge of going on after an act that slayed it, and the importance of going all-in during every performance. Donnell also goes into his time spent in the Air-Force, and explains why he joined.
14:11 -- Donnell talks about the classic "Player Hater's Ball" sketch from Chappelle Show, and details what went into naming and building his character for the clip, including a jheri curl wig, a spray can of activator and a mirror. He also responds to the question often asked of if he ever gets tired of talking about his time on the Chappelle Show, he speaks on his appearances on the Ricki Lake Show, and sneaking in TV appearances on People's court every chance he got.
21:54 -- Donnell reflects on his early days doing stand-up in Washington D.C. where he was born and raised. He details why he decided to move to New York, what it was like performing for the first time there, and how he got put on to Def Comedy Jam. Talib also asks about Donnell's closeness with Brooklyn claiming it his second home, Donnell speaks on infiltrating the Brooklyn Moon Cafe by telling them he was a poet to get stage time, and goes on to explain "protest-head".
28:28 -- Jasmin asks Donnell to expand on his hustler mentality of "go hard or go home" and manifesting his own opportunities. He explains by referencing a backstage moment auditioning for Chappelle Show, details a very important component of what it takes to reach success in show business, and speaks to his thoughts of fame before reaching fame.
34:00 -- Donnell is asked what it was like for the cast of Chappelle Show when they knew it was ending. He digs into being in the middle of shooting one of the last sketches and what Dave said that let them know what might be coming. Donnell also digs into getting together with Charlie Murphy and Bill Burr to put on the "I'm Rich Biatch" tour and host the Chappelle Show Lost Episodes in the aftermath of Dave leaving. He goes on to speak on his close friendship with Charlie, and expands on his incredible story-telling and roasting skills, and how much of an all-around great guy he really was.
41:20 -- Talib brings up the "Ashy Ankles" moment of Michael Rappaport's appearance on People's Party, and asks Donnell aka "Ashy Larry" for his take on white people using the term. Jasmin also asks Donnell to list his personal top 5 Chappelle Show sketches, they talk about how long it took for Wayne Brady to say the word "Bitch", and how kids were getting suspended from school for imitating Dave's Rick James interpretation.
48:21 -- Donnell speaks on his multiple appearances on the Breakfast Club, and explains why everytime he gets on it feels like he's going to war with three people. Donnell also expands on the backstory to a part of his stand-up when he talks about being forced to read in class, how most of his material is based on real-life experiences, Jasmin asks how Donnell feels about the current state of stand-up with online comedy taking hold especially during COVID, and Donnell expands on how essential comedy is during times like these.
58:38 -- Donnell gets asked about his experience working on HBO's iconic series "The Wire". He talks about how he and Michael K. Williams were both up for the role of Omar, how he didn't realize how successful the show was going to be so early-on, and how his character Damien "Day-Day" Price was originally scripted to have more development. Isiah Whitlock also gets a solid mention, and Donnell tells what his father had to say about the character of Omar.
1:03:36 -- Donnell gives his take on the "Defund The Police" chant during protests, as someone that has spent time in the military and even considered becoming a cop himself at one point in time. He talks about how he feels more hopeful this time around with so many white people showing up for the cause, they discuss the difficulties in getting the good cops to speak up when they see wrong-doing, the disdain that many black cops are subjected to from their own communities, they point out reasons why some police should consider a different profession, and Donnell notes how accountability is the only thing that will give lasting change.
1:15:43 -- Talib asks Donnell to outline what he has coming down the line for his fans. He talks about his pod-cast, his "Black Ash" candle line and other irons he has on the fire.
Over the weekend 50 Cent got into a chair and table throwing scuffle with a New Jersey rapper who he had previously had problems with. The rapper now claims he had given Jack Thriller $5,000 to squash the beef with 50, but he never told the G-Unit boss.
Nearly six months after the original acclaimed series came to an end, Starz has unveiled a slew of images and the premiere date for the upcoming sequel series "Power Book II: Ghost."
Created once again by original showrunner Courtney A. Kemp, the series picks up shortly after the original series as Tariq St. Patrick finds himself on his own for the first time in his life as his father is dead and his mother, Tasha, is facing charges for the murder Tariq committed, all while attending an Ivy League to earn his inheritance. Tariq finds himself splitting his time between school and hustling to pay for his mother’s defense attorney Davis McLean, turning to the drug game and becoming intertwined with a cutthroat family headed by Monet Stewart Tejada.
The series for the cast sees the returns of Michael Rainey Jr. as Tariq and Naturi Naughton as Tasha, as well as Mary J. Blige ( The Umbrella Academy ) as Monet, Shane Johnson returning as Cooper Saxe, Gani Paolo ( The Fosters ), Quincy Tyler Bernstine ( Ray Donovan ), Daniel Bellomy, Paige Hurd ( Hawaii Five-O ), Cliff “Method Man” Smith ( The Deuce ) and Melanie Liburd ( This is Us ).
Kemp acts as creator, showrunner and executive producer via her banner End of Episode alongside Curtis “50 Cent” Jackson via his G-Unit Film and Television company, with Mark Canton executive producing for Atmosphere Entertainment MM and End of Episode’s Chris Selak and Danielle De Jesus also attached.
Power Book II: Ghost is set to premiere on Starz this September.
Amy Cooper -- AKA Central Park "Karen" -- isn't off the hook for making a false report against a man who asked her to leash her dog, despite the fact he doesn't want her prosecuted ... TMZ has learned.
As we reported ... the Manhattan D.A. announced this week his office initiated a prosecution against Cooper for Falsely Reporting an Incident in the Third Degree ... this, for the May 25 incident in which she called police claiming, "There's an African-American man threatening my life."
That man -- Christian Cooper (no relation), a birdwatcher -- made headlines shortly afterward when he said ... "She's already paid a steep price. That's not enough of a deterrent to others? Bringing her more misery just seems like piling on."
Amy was fired from her job and briefly lost custody of her dog after the video of her incident with Christian went viral.
So, Christian says if the Manhattan D.A. wants to pursue charges against Amy, that's his right ... but he will not be involved in the prosecution.
Well, TMZ's learned ... that's exactly what will happen. We're told the D.A.'s Office would like Christian to cooperate, but in this case, it's not necessary -- because he's technically not the victim ... it's the city. Besides, there's a smoking gun -- the video.
We reached out to the D.A.'s office ... it had no comment, other than to confirm Amy's scheduled to appear in court in October for her arraignment.
If convicted, she faces a max sentence of 1 year in jail.
LOS ANGELES (AP) — Kelly Preston, who played dramatic and comic foil to actors ranging from Tom Cruise in “Jerry Maguire” to Arnold Schwarzenegger in “Twins,” died Sunday, husband John Travolta said. She was 57.
Travolta said in an Instagram post that his wife of 28 years died after a two-year battle with breast cancer.
“It is with a very heavy heart that I inform you that my beautiful wife Kelly has lost her two-year battle with breast cancer,” Travolta said. “She fought a courageous fight with the love and support of so many.”
The couple had three children together.
“Shocked by this sad news,” Maria Shriver said on Twitter. “Kelly was such a bright loving soul, a talented actress, and a loving mom and wife. My heart breaks for her family who have already known such sadness and grief.”
Preston had a lengthy acting career in movies and television, starring opposite Kevin Costner in the 1999 film “For the Love of the Game.” In 2003, she starred in “What a Girl Wants” and as the mom in the live-action adaptation of “The Cat in the Hat.” The following year she appeared in the music video for Maroon 5′s “She Will Be Loved.”
Russell Crowe tweeted that he met Preston “first in late ’92 I think,” adding, “In 1995 we auditioned together for Breaking Up, Salma Hayek got that gig.” Crowe said he hadn’t seen Preston much, “but when I did, she was always the same sparkly eyed gem.”
She occasionally appeared in films with her husband, as they did in the box-office bomb “Battlefield Earth” in 2000.
Preston and Travolta were married at a midnight ceremony in Paris in 1991 while the couple were expecting their first son, Jett.
(CNN) The National Football League's Washington Redskins will officially announce Monday that the team will be changing its name, according to multiple reports.
Although the team is expected to announce the change of name, the new name will not be announced until a later date due to trademark issues, according to Sports Business Daily. Head coach Ron Rivera told The Washington Post in an interview he was working with team owner Daniel Snyder on a name that would honor both the military and Native Americans.
Following weeks of protests denouncing racism and as the country continues to confront systems of oppression more directly in recent weeks, the Washington Redskins could be the first team to announce a name change. The Major League Baseball's Cleveland Indians have also pledged to reexamine their name. The team's manager recently said he believes it's time to change the name and "it's time to move forward."
On July 3, the Washington Redskins announced that a "thorough review" of the team's name would be conducted. The name has long been denounced by Native American groups as an ethnic slur.
"In light of recent events around our country and feedback from our community, the Washington Redskins are announcing the team will undergo a thorough review of (its) name," the team had said in a statement. "This review formalizes the initial discussions the team has been having with the league in recent weeks."
The decision to re-examine the name also came amid mounting pressure from several corporate sponsors, including FedEx, who have the naming rights to the team's stadium.
Other brands, including Nike and Amazon, have removed the team's merchandise from their online stores.
"Temper, Temper" is a classic song and video from the late, great Stack Bundles. You can find it on his "Library of a Rockstar: Chapter 22 – Hip Hop’s Savior" mixtape.
SAN ANTONIO, Texas – A Texas hospital says a patient who was a healthy young man died from coronavirus after attending a “COVID” party.
The unidentified 30-year-old man died at Methodist Hospital in San Antonio, according to the hospital’s top doctor, Jane Appleby.
“This is a party held by somebody diagnosed with the COVID virus, and the thought is people get together to see if the virus is real and if anyone gets infected,” Appleby said, NBC 4 San Antonio reported Friday.
“Just before the person died they looked at the nurse and they said, ‘I think I made a mistake. I thought it was a hoax but it’s not,” she said, according to the station.
“This is just one example of an avoidable death in a young member of our community,” she said. “I can’t imagine the loss of the family.”
Appleby said the hospital is treating other COVID-19 patients in their 20s and 30s who are “severely ill,” the station reported.
Earlier this month reports out of Tuscaloosa in Alabama quoted government officials as saying college students there were holding COVID parties with cash prizes being offered. Attendees put money in a pot that was awarded to the person who became infected first.
ABU DHABI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — Kamaru Usman retained his welterweight title with a smothering victory over short-notice challenger Jorge Masvidal at UFC 251 on Sunday.
Alexander Volkanovski retained his featherweight title with a narrow split decision over Max Holloway, and Petr Yan won the vacant UFC bantamweight championship with a fifth-round stoppage victory over José Aldo on Yas Island, the UAE tourist destination turned into a secure bubble by the UFC during the coronavius pandemic.
Former strawweight champion Rose Namajunas avenged her loss to Jéssica Andrade with a split-decision win in their rematch on the UFC’s so-called “Fight Island.” The mixed martial arts promotion will host four shows this month at the arena, with more expected in the upcoming months at its haven from the coronavirus.
Usman (17-1) earned his 16th straight MMA victory and defended his belt for the second time with a cerebral, technical performance against the 35-year-old Masvidal (35-14), who gallantly accepted his first UFC title shot on six days’ notice when Gilbert Burns tested positive for the coronavirus.
“(Masvidal) is the biggest, baddest dude out there right now,” Usman said. “I had to switch gears and prepare for him on six days’ notice. I know a lot was made of him taking the fight on short notice, but all these guys are preparing for one guy, and that’s me at the top of the mountain. I had to make a mental shift. I had a completely different game plan.”
Masvidal was eager for a knockout, and the former backyard brawler came out swinging in an exciting first round. But while Masvidal’s wind faded, Usman coolly took charge with wrestling takedowns, foot stomps and judicious strikes mixed with superior conditioning.
Two judges scored it 50-45 for Usman, and a third had it 49-46.
Some fans might have booed Usman’s strategy, but there were no fans inside the temporary arena. UFC 251 began well before dawn Sunday morning in Abu Dhabi to meet the time demands of the lucrative North American pay-per-view audience, and the sun rose as the card progressed.
Volkanovski (22-1) earned his 19th consecutive MMA victory since 2013 by a razor-thin margin, winning 48-47 on two of the three cards when his leg kicks and takedowns earned the decision over Holloway’s overall striking game.
“It was a tough fight,” Volkanovski said. “He stood there and didn’t really take a backward step. I couldn’t use the kicks as much as I liked. I knew I had to win that last round. It’s tough. He’s a gamer. We’re both hard workers, but I got the job done.”
The Australian champion won his belt last December with a virtuoso technical performance against Holloway (21-6), who had reigned atop the division for the previous three years.
In the rematch, Holloway showed off another level of his superb striking skills while weathering dozens more leg kicks from Volkanovski, who relied largely on that strike to win the first bout. Holloway largely controlled the first two rounds, but Volkanovski increased his output starting in the third round and added a few takedowns to bolster his case with the judges.
Three title belts were on the line on the same card for only the sixth time in UFC history, and Yan (15-1) claimed the first one by persevering for a beating of Aldo (28-7), the former featherweight champion dethroned by Conor McGregor in 2015.
Yan weathered an inspired start by Aldo, and eventually established his dominance with superior striking. After Yan battered a bloody Aldo into a turtled position on the canvas in the fifth round, referee Leon Roberts allowed the fight to continue for an alarming amount of time before stopping it with 1:36 left.
“I expected it to be a hard fight,” Yan said through an interpreter. “That was our plan, to get him tired early on, and then in the third round, start attacking.”
Aldo has lost three straight fights and six of his last nine, but he caused problems for Yan early on until the younger Russian took over.
Namajunas (9-4) returned from a 14-month break since Andrade (20-8) claimed her title with an upset victory, surprising the champ with a body slam after Namajunas dominated the early fight.
Namajunas never allowed an opportunity for Andrade to finish her in the rematch, dominating the first two rounds with her slick striking and fluid movement. Andrade rallied in the third and badly damaged Namajunas’ nose and left eye, but Namajunas won 29-28 on two judges’ scorecards.
“I was just in the right state of mind,” Namajunas said. “That’s everything. Early on in the fight, I was doing great. Then I think she hit the desperation button and started really unloading. She caught me a couple of times, but I just stayed strong.”
If her nose heals up quickly, Namajunas could get the next title shot at Zhang Weili, who took the belt from Andrade late last year.
Brazilian flyweight Amanda Ribas kicked off the pay-per-view card with a first-round armbar submission victory over Paige VanZant. Ribas (10-1) improved to 4-0 in the UFC with a swift dismantling of the popular VanZant (8-5), whose UFC contract is up after four losses in her last six bouts.
Jiri Procházka wrapped up the non-PPV undercard with a spectacular knockout of former light heavyweight title contender Volkan Oezdemir in the opening minute of the second round.
Procházka (27-3-1) is a Czech veteran who has fought mostly in Japan for the past five years, and he was impressive in his hyped UFC debut. Procházka lowered his hands, stuck out his chin and boldly dared Oezdemir to hit him in the first round, and he ended the fight with a head kick followed by a punch that rendered his Swiss opponent unconscious.
Once again Snow Tha Product displays her elite lyrical ability in her new official music video for "On My Shit Freestyle." Check it out below and let us know what you think.
Rapper Lil Marlo was shot to death over the weekend in Atlanta ... law enforcement confirms with TMZ.
Cops tell us, they responded to a call at 2:06 Sunday morning. The call came in as a car accident on Interstate 285 in downtown Atlanta, but when police arrived they found the rapper had been shot. He was pronounced dead at the scene. Police do not know if this was a drive-by shooting, whether someone in his car shot him or whether he was shot somewhere else and was driving when he crashed.
The Medical Examiner confirmed with us they have the body of Rudolph Johnson ... that's Lil Marlo's government name.
Someone shot video of the aftermath.
Lil Yachty broke the news Sunday morning, saying, "We just did a song a 4 this morning smh rip brother."
Lil Marlo was signed to the Quality Control label and scored big with several songs, including "1st N 3rd," "F****em" and "9 + Z6ne = 1'5."
Marlo was in good company at QC ... other artists include Migos, Lil Yachty, Lil Baby and City Girls.
Marlo joined Quality Control in 2017 ... you hear him on "The Load" with Lil Baby and Gucci Mane.
Lil Marlo leaves behind a daughter and a son. On Father's Day he posted a video of himself and the little girl ... you see her trying to put a shoe on her father's foot. He captioned the post, "Thanks For Making Me Y'all Father I Wouldn't Trade Y'all For Da World."
Max Holloway uses the Abu Dhabi air to cut weight; Alexander Volkanovski sticks to a sauna. Kamaru Usman talks about facing Jorge Masvidal. After official weigh-ins, Dana White presides over faceoffs between opponents, including Petr Yan vs. Jose Aldo.
Soft White Underbelly follow up interview and portrait of Andrea, a spice addict living on Skid Row. Here’s a link to Andrea’s first video on my channel:https://youtu.be/08WIBFQKwQ0
Actress Charlize Theron describes how a friend got her into UFC and how she has loved it ever since. She goes in depth on her favorite fighters to watch including Jon Jones and Rose Namajunas. She finally gives her prediction for the UFC 251 main event between Kamaru Usman and Jorge Masvidal.
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