Page 25 - Florida Sentinel 2-8-19

Entertainment
‘Power’ Creator Courtney Kemp Lands New HBO Series About Dirty Cops
Wonder How Much Gladys Knight Got Paid To Perform At Super Bowl LIII?
Soul legend Gladys Knight was hit with fierce criticism for her decision to perform at the Super Bowl be- fore the New England Patriots vs. Los Angeles Rams game.
The seven-time Grammy winner hit the stage at Mer- cedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta on Sunday and delivered the “Star Spangled Banner” in her hometown to more than 100 million viewers.
But inquiring minds want to know, just how much money was she paid for the gig?
As reported by Yahoo Fi- nance, the NFL covers “all costs,” from travel and accom- modations to production set- up, a NFL spokesperson tells MONEY. Beyond that, how- ever, Super Bowl national an- them singers and halftime performers aren’t compen- sated.
This year’s halftime per- formers, Maroon 5, Travis Scott, and Big Boi — were each reportedly paid on a “union scale,” and it’s unclear if Knight received a similar amount.
Prior to hitting the stage at the biggest sporting event of the year, Knight defended her decision to perform at Super Bowl LIII.
“I have fought long and hard for all my life, from walk- ing back hallways, from marching with our social lead- ers, from using my voice for good,” she said in a statement, noting that she doesn’t have to prove her commitment to civil rights.
“I have been in the fore-
GLADYS KNIGHT
front of this battle longer than most of those voicing their opinions to win the right to sing our country’s anthem on a stage as large as the Super Bowl,” Knight added.
“It is unfortunate that our National Anthem has been dragged into this debate when the distinctive senses of the National Anthem and fighting for justice should each stand alone,” she told TMZ.
Knight joined a limited halftime show lineup that even actor Donnie Wahlberg noted was too white to be right.
Gladys Knight previously said she wanted to “give the anthem back its voice” to in- clude Americans advocating for racial and social justice.
“I pray that this National Anthem will bring us all to- gether in a way never before witnessed and we can move forward and untangle these truths which mean so much to all of us,” she said.
Power creator Courtney Kemp now has a project in the works with HBO that will recount the experiences of corrupt police at a notorious precinct in Harlem, accord- ing to Deadline Hollywood.
The new project is called Dirty Thirty and is partly based on the real-life experi- ences of police officers with NYPD’s 30th Precinct, which was the subject of a string of arrests and corruption probes, Deadline Hollywood reports. The precinct was dubbed the “Dirty Thirty” after revelations that the offi- cers based there were in- volved in drug dealing, extortion and other illegal ac- tivity.
The officers robbed drug dealers and sold drugs during their heyday in the mid- 1990s, according to the New York Post.
Thirty-three police officers were charged with perjury,
COURTNEY KEMP
robbery, burglary, assault and theft, the Post reported.
Deadline Hollywood
shared a synopsis of the film: “a story of a cop family and ends as the story of a crime wave infecting the highest levels of municipal govern- ment, corrupting the justice system and defining a city.”
Last October, Courtney Kemp inked a lucrative new
deal to develop more shows and a spinoff from the drama series.
This comes as exiting news for dedicated fans who have tuned in to see James “Ghost” St. Patrick (Omari Hardwick) try to get out of the deadly drug game and navigate a love tri- angle between his ride-or-die wife Tasha (Naturi Naughton) and first love and federal prosecutor An- gela (Lela Loren).
In a statement, the Starz network said: “Under the new long-term deal, Kemp will develop and produce a variety of new content across multiple platforms through her End of Episode banner, which encompasses several commitments from STARZ to develop series drawing upon Kemp’s unique sensibility, including potential projects inspired by the world of Power.”
Donald Glover's ‘Atlanta’ Not Returning In 2019
Fans of FX’s Atlanta won’t be watching its third season in 2019. Donald Glover’s hit series has been delayed until at least 2020, according to the Hollywood Reporter.
FX CEO John Landgraf and PR boss John Solberg confirmed the delay at the Television Critics Association winter press tour on Monday (February 4).
“I don’t know whether we’ll have Atlanta or not,” Landgraf said.
Solberg noted, “It won’t be for this Emmy cycle.”
Landgraf elaborated on
DONALD GLOVER
Atlanta’s status, noting Glover’s hectic schedule as
a factor in the delay. The FX chief also mentioned some “personal things” affecting the multi-faceted artist’s abil- ity to work on the series as planned.
“As you might imagine, Donald Glover is sort of the king of all media, and he just has had an incredibly complicated life,” Landgraf said. “He’s had personal things he’s had to deal with, from injuries to other things I’d rather not say publicly that just have to do not with his personal life but his ex- tended family.
21 Savage Vows To Fight Deportation, Lawyer Says He ‘Never Hid’ His Immigration Status
As details of 21 Savage’s ICE arrest continue to un- fold, the Atlanta-based rap- per’s lawyer is speaking out. According to the BBC, attor- ney Charles Kuck is adamant his client never hid his immigration status.
In a statement, Kuck claims the platinum-selling artist’s arrest was “based upon incorrect information about prior criminal charges.” In 2014, 21 Sav- age — real name Sha Yaa Bin Abraham-Joseph — was convicted of drug-related
21 SAVAGE
charges, although that con-
viction was reportedly ex- punged.
Kuck says his client was in the process of obtaining a U visa so he could legally stay in the United States. In 2013, 21 Savage was shot six times on his 21st birthday by a rival gang member in an at- tempted robbery. The am- bush took the life of his little brother, Johnny “Tay- Man” Abraham-Joseph.
U visas are granted to non-citizen victims of crime who intend to cooperate with U. S. authorities.
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