Coldplay And Beyonce's Video for 'Hymn For The Weekend' Sparks Cultural Appropriation Debate1/30/2016
The head-scratching collaboration of Coldplay and Beyonce released the music video for "Hymn For The Weekend" on Friday, and it broke the internet in all the wrong ways. The admittedly captivating video features frontman Chris Martin exploring the beauty of India and the band rocking out with locals while being pelted with color powders used in the Indian celebration of Holi. Queen B appears in interwoven vignettes as a Bollywood star dancing in front of wall of flowers in traditional Indian attire and with henna and headpieces.
The video's premise, especially Beyonce's attire and choreography, instantly sparked an online debate of whether or not Coldplay and Beyonce appropriated Indian culture. Cultural appropriation is essentially a dominant culture "borrowing" customs, attire and histories from minorities often for profit, according to RaceRelations.About.com. A modern day example would be Miley Cyrus co-opting the twerk at her infamous 2013 VMA performance--a dance that was popular in the '90s party scene long before she was born and has centuries old roots in West African culture. The social media response to the video was instant, decisive and incredibly varied...
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If you ever wondered what happened to The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air’s original Aunt Viv, “blactress” Janet Hubert took to Facebook on Monday mostly to respond to Jada Pinkett- Smith’s announcement that she is boycotting this year’s Academy Awards, but also to shed even more light on her mysterious disappearance from the popular ‘90s sitcom.
Let’s start from the beginning, shall we? Early Monday, Jada—Will Smith’s wife—announced that her and her husband were boycotting the Oscars after Will failed to be nominated for his work in the NFL drama “Concussion” Last week's Oscar nominations all but shut out actors, writers and directors of color from the main categories, despite several strong contenders (Creed, Straight Outta Compton, Beasts Of No Nation etc.) that garnered resounding praise from both critics and fans. More on that here. “Maybe it is time that we pull back our resources and we put them back into our communities, into our programs, and we make programs for ourselves that acknowledge us in ways that we see fit, that are just as good as the so-called 'mainstream' ones,” Jada proposed in the video. “Begging for acknowledgement…diminishes dignity and diminishes power. We are a dignified people and we are powerful. Let’s not forget it.” No word if the Smith family millions will be funding such efforts. Janet Hubert—who since being fired from The Fresh Prince in 1993 has done gotten mostly guest-starring roles on sitcoms save for extended runs on soap operas—posted an immediate and response in an instantly-viral Facebook video of her own. And she read Jada for filth with an effortlessness that probably has all Real Housewives taking notes.
The gifts are opened, the Christmas ham is just a few scraps in Tupperware and relatives are gearing up to return home. Christmas is over, but hopefully the holiday spirit still remains. What’s a better way to extend the holiday cheer (and possibly stoke some Grinch-worthy jealousy) than to see how everyone from mom-to-be and model Chrissy Teigen to Steve Harvey spent their Christmas?
Our favorite celebrities took to Instagram and Twitter to share holiday wishes, the most heart-warming came from new parents, Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson and first-time poppa Justin Timberlake. Johnson, who welcomed a third daughter, Jasmine, with girlfriend Lauren Hashian, on December 20. On Christmas Day, he posted an adorable video in which he serenaded his festively dressed daughter and provided her adorable response (see below). It’s safe to say little Jasmine will be loved, protected and entertained for this holiday and many more to come.
On Monday, Pottermore.com announced the cast of the upcoming Harry Potter play, "Cursed Child," and Hermione Granger, the wizarding world's most overachieving witch, will be portrayed by a black actress Noma Dumezweni. Actors Jamie Parker and Paul Thornley will play Harry and Ron, respectively.
Though author J.K. Rowling didn't dispute the universally known white Hermione during the creation of the book covers or casting of the movies, she took to Twitter to defend the decision: "Canon: brown eyes, frizzy hair and very clever. White skin was never specified. Rowling loves black Hermione." "Cursed Child" is based on an original story written by Rowling, and will debut on the London stage in June 2016. Still high from NBC's stunning production of "The Wiz Live!" and the staggering "Star Wars: The Force Awakens" opening, Black Twitter eased on down Diagon Alley, and re-cast the entire series with black actors using the #BlackHarryPotter hashtag. The results are brilliant enough to pray for a race-bent production in the future. It all begins with two young lovers...
Earlier this month, Jennifer Lopez took the stage in the Big Apple to celebrate our nation's birthday. In case you were wondering, Jenny From The Block at 48 can get down better than the baby-faced industry newbies.
Jennifer Lopez maintains her iconic status as mother, mogul and megastar. Currently, she is a judge and producer of NBC's "World Of Dance"; star of the award-winning "All I Have" concert residency at Planet Hollywood in Las Vegas, she is also starring and producing the NBC crime drama, "Shades Of Blue," which has just been renewed for a third season. She also maintains multiple fashion lines and a home decor line. There are priceless lessons to be mined from JLO's legendary career. Here are four big ones that just might help you achieve your dreams. This week, People Magazine gave retired soccer player David Beckham the honor of being their “Sexiest Man Alive.” And while David Beckham makes the some ladies swoon, I was totally underwhelmed by the choice. But I almost always am, and it's not a big deal. It’s all innocent fun, right? It's actually indicative of a very big problem: all of People's sexiest men, save for Denzel Washington in 1996, have been white. This speaks to a much larger trend in Hollywood and mainstream media that works to reinforce the exclusionary European standard of hotness. The magazine has been crowning Hollywood’s hottest since 1985—a pre-crazy Mel Gibson got the first honor—and they have celebrated everyone from Harry Hamlin (???!) to Brad Pitt and George Clooney twice to last year’s Chris Hemsworth, according to Buzzfeed.com. For a country that prides itself on being a cultural melting pot, America's cup runneth over with gorgeous celebrities of all ethnicities just begging to be celebrated. So here are my picks for the Hollywood’s Sexiest Men...in no particular order. If I forgot your favorite, hit up the comments below!
If you watched last night’s 67th Primetime Emmy Awards, you probably had two questions: What the hell is “Olive Kitteridge”? Should we now refer to “How To Get Away With Murder’s” Viola Davis, the first Black woman to win Best Actress In A Drama, as Queen Viola Davis?
The awards ceremony—in which host Andy Samberg did his best to bring his affable dufus brand of comedy to a staunchly formal hosting gig—had its share of high and lows. Jon Hamm finally winning Best Actor in a Drama for his layered performance in AMC’s “Mad Men”: high point. The endless string of wins for limited series “Olive Kitteridge”: low point, solely for the repetition and lack of recognition. Taraji P. Henson’s tearful glee over Regina King’s win and speech for Best Actress in a Limited Series or Movie: high point. Taraji P. Henson scowling after “Empire” co-star kissed her on the cheek: confusing point. The incredibly spoilery montage honoring series finales: supremely low point. “Sons Of Anarchy” is on my binge-watch list, man! Uzo Aduba’s tearful speech for her second-consecutive win for Best Supporting Actress In A Drama in “Orange Is The New Black”: high point "Parks and Recreation's" Amy Poehler losing her 16th Emmy nomination: depressingly low point. But Davis’ deserving win was downright meteoric. She used her Best Actress moment not to rattle off an endless list of names or take videos with her cell phone, but to make a bold statement about the awaiting talent yet lack of opportunities for Black people in Hollywood, and to uplift her colleagues and fellow nominees. Davis began her speech by quoting American hero and activist Harriet Tubman (Davis is will product and star in an HBO biopic about Tubman's life, Variety.com reports): "I see a line, and over that line I see green fields and lovely flowers and beautiful white women with their arms stretched out to me over that line. I can't seem to get there now. I can’t seem to get over that line." The moment was triumphant, powerful, and left me dizzy with awe. It resonated as a glorious coronation for one of the best actresses of this generation. I’ve been pretending to win an Emmy for decades, and this is the first time the Best Actress winner looked like me. God bless the queen! Watch history being made below! What was your favorite Emmy moment? Share below. Photo Credit: eonline.com |
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