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Entertainment
Common And John
Oscars Protest Called Off
AVA DUVERNAY AND NAJEE ALI
An Oscars protest that was planned by the LA office of the National Action Network (NAW) was called off.
According to Najee Ali, the director of NAW in a state- ment:
“Upon the request of SELMA director Ava DuVer- nay, the Los Angeles chapter of the National Action Network has agreed to forgo our planned protests of the Oscars today and pursue instead a di- rect dialogue with the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sci- ences via Cheryl Boone Isaacs and Dawn Hudson. We continue to be fervent in our mission for expansion and inclusion within the Academy and the motion picture indus- try as a whole.”
Reality Star From ‘Real Chance Of Love’ Dies
AHMAD ‘REAL’ GIVENS
Ahmad Givens – known to fans of VH1's Real Chance of Love as "Real" – has died after a long battle with colon cancer. He was 33.
Givens and his brother Kamal had been contestants on VH1's I Love New York in 2007. The next year, the broth- ers went on to star on their own reality dating show Real Chance of Love for two sea- sons.
In 2013, Givens was diag- nosed with stage 4 colon can- cer.
"That day was very surreal. I felt like I was dreaming," Givens said in a interview at the New York Life 2014 Na- tional Cultural Markets Con- ference last year. "It felt unreal allthewayupuntilIhadtodo chemo."
Givens said after surgery, the tumors spread to the left side of his brain, leaving him partially paralyzed on the right side of his body.
"I had to learn how to walk again and everything," ex- plained Givens, who said that radiation successfully eradi- cated the brain tumor. "I just have faith in God, man."
TLC Kickstarter Campaign
Legend Win Oscars For The Song ‘Glory’
Ends With Big Pay
"Glory," the emotional musical centerpiece about the civil rights movement from Selma, bested "Every- thing Is Awesome" (The Lego Movie), "Grateful" (Be- yond the Lights), "Lost Stars" (Begin Again) and "I'm Not Gonna Miss You" (Glen Campbell: I'll Be Me) to win Best Original Song at the Academy Awards.
"We wrote this song for a film that was based on events that were 50 years ago, but we say that Selma is now be- cause the struggle for justice is right now," Legend said in his acceptance speech. "We live in the most incarcerated country in the world. There are more Black men under correctional control today than were under slavery in 1850. When people are marching with our song, we want to tell you, 'We are with you. We see you. We love you. And march on.'"
Common, a FAMU alum, initially took the song to
It’s been a month since TLC launched their surprising high-profile Kickstarter cam- paign asking fans to fund their last album as a duo. And after weeks of strong support from fans, their Kickstarter cam- paign has come to an end and TLC has completed it with a mountain of money.
Back in January, TLC started their Kickstarter fund with a goal of just $150,000. But with support from fans, as well as celebs like NKOTB, Nelly and Katy Perry, the ladies reached their goal in just
CHILI AND T-BOZ
a few days.
After just a month, TLC’s
Kickstarter campaign officially ended Friday at noon, and when it was all said and done the duo walked away with a whopping $430,000 from more than 4,000 backers.
COMMON AND JOHN LEGEND
Legend for help, noted that the duo recently performed "Glory" on Selma, Alabama's Edmund Pettus Bridge, the structure that became a civil rights focal point after armed policemen attacked civil rights protestors in 1965.
"This bridge was once a landmark of a divided nation, but now is a symbol for change," Common said. "The spirit of this bridge transcends race, gender, reli- gion, sexual orientation and social status."
Housewives Star Kandi Regrets Being Open About Her Marriage
Kandi Burruss has been very open about her marriage to Todd Tucker on “The Real Housewives of Atlanta.” But now she’s regrets sharing too much in front of the cam- eras, she revealed in her Bravo blog.
“As soon as Todd and I got married he had to leave for LA to start production on his show,” she said. “We went from being together every day to going weeks without seeing each other. It took some time to adjust.” Todd is the execu- tive producer of TV Ones ‘Hol- lywood Divas’.
KANDI BURESS AND TODD TUCKER
She added, “things were tense for a short period of time, but we’re great now. I do regret talking about it on TV. I’m a very open person, but I’m learning that it’s not al- ways a great idea to be an open book when it comes to your marriage.”
People Mag Reports Bobbi Kristina Was Using Major Drugs
Bobbi Kristina Brown
was under the influence of drugs the morning she was found unresponsive in her bathtub, a source familiar with the details of the situation tells PEOPLE.
The 21-year-old was found face-down and unresponsive in the tub inside her Georgia home on Jan. 31. She was rushed to the hospital and has been on life support in critical condition ever since.
Multiple sources who know Brown confirm to PEOPLE that she regularly used heroin, cocaine and Xanax in recent months. She was also a heavy drinker, the sources say. One of the sources who saw Brown regularly says she often appeared to be high, slurring her words and seeming incoherent.
Another source says Brown had been "in and out" of rehab in the three years since her mother died. Brown was "distraught" over the an- niversary of her mother's death on Feb. 11, which fueled her addiction despite attempts at recovery, the source adds.
Nick Gordon Refuses To Visit Bobbi Kristina
ATLANTA - Bobbi Kristina Brown's boyfriend
has de- clined to visit her in the hospi- tal, Bobby Brown's attorney said.
In a statement
BOBBI KRISTINA
released Saturday, Christo- pher Brown, Bobby's Brown attorney, blasted media reports of Bobbi Kristina Brown, saying, "The numerous fictional re- porting involving Bobbi Kristina continues and Bobby Brown's request for privacy clearly has not been heard by all members of the media.”
Nick Gordon, Bobbi Kristina's boyfriend, issued a statement through his attor- ney on Wednesday saying that he isn't visiting her in the hos- pital to avoid confrontation with her family.
In response, Christopher Brown said, "To address the continued and never ending media requests for comment about Mr. Gordon's re- quests to visit Bobbi Kristina, let me be very clear, Mr. Gordon was offered an opportunity to potentially visit Bobbi Kristina and he de- clined to meet the terms of any possible visit.
PAGE 14 FLORIDA SENTINEL BULLETIN PUBLISHED EVERY TUESDAY AND FRIDAY TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 24, 2015