Tracee Ellis Ross Says She’s Flattered By Hair Praise, But Wants Black Women To Love What They’ve Got On Their Own Heads

(madamenoire.com) There’s a bit of an unspoken trend in the natural hair movement of women kissing perms goodbye, not really to embrace their own curl patterns, but to achieve the texture of some other woman with natural hair whom they admire. One of the women who’s often on the receiving end of that admiration is actress Tracee Ellis Ross who, since her days on “Girlfriends,” has inspired many cases of hair envy among black women. But feeling a sense of responsibility after catching a meme on Instagram of a little girl crying with the caption, “That moment you realize you don’t have Tracee Ellis Ross’s hair,” the funny lady took to YouTube to release a video on the rather serious nature of hair envy. She said:

 “I am geniunely am honored and tickled and excited by the fact that people like my hair. It’s really nice when people like something about you, especially when they like something that you worked so hard on and used to hate. I used to hate my hair. My hair was so much work. It’s still a lot of work. But it’s a lot of work with a lot of payoff now.”

 Challenging the notion that her hair is better or easier to style because she’s biracial, Tracee said her dad being white has nothing to do with her having some type of “very special hair.” 

 “It’s not true people! We all have different textures, different ethnicities, different mixes different curl patterns. I’ve had a journey of figuring this hair out.”

Detailing her press and perm struggles, her transition period, and finally coming to a place of loving her own locks, Tracee added: 

“I’m flattered and honored and so excited that you like something that was tough for me. But at the same time, I don’t want you to want my hair. The reason I don’t want you to want my hair is I’m of the school of love what you’ve got. For me, the reason my hair was such a battle is because was trying to make it something it wasn’t. I wanted the hair that somebody else had. And because of that I was damaging my hair and trying to beat it into submission….

 “I love that you love my hair but I only love that you love my hair if it’s an inspiration for you to love your hair.” - 

Now that’s a message more black women need to hear. Check out Tracee’s full vlog below. What do you think about what she said? Have you been guilty of trying to make your natural hair into something it isn’t? - 

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Mariah Carey Role As Slave Slammed By Critics

(eurweb.com) *Lee Daniels’ highly-anticipated film “The Butler,” upset some people when a photograph of Mariah Carey playing the role of a field slave went viral. Daniels’ movie also features the character Eugene Allen (Forest Whitaker).

The picture caught a barrage of flak from those on social media who felt that anyone with a complexion like Mariah’s wouldn’t actually have to work in the field, therefore deeming the illustration inaccurate. Those with fair skin like hers were usually used as house slaves. Fans took to Twitter to express a desire to see a more dark-skinned woman in the place of Mariah Carey in the movie.

One critic tweeted “She wouldn’t even be a house slave, she could pass as white,” and another posted “Zoe Saldana is Nina Simone and Mariah Carey is in the fields taking good slave acting jobs from dark-skinned people.”

Daniels’ choice to cast Mariah Carey in this particular role raises the question in some folks’ mind about whether he took the time to gather historical facts. Others believe that the media has brain washed us into believing that slaves were always separated by the tone of their skin which wasn’t always the case. Slaves with light skin weren’t always granted immunity from picking in the field just the same as all dark-skinned slaves weren’t banned from working in the house. Yes there were many cases where a slave bearing lighter skin was a result of a slave owner having his way sexually with one of the female slaves. In this case more often than not the children were still confined to slavery but were used as house slaves because of their blood relation with their owner.

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Album Review: Kelly Rowland “Talk a Good Game”

(youknowigotsoul.com) Before we begin, can we just clear the air real quick?

Kelly Rowland is not Beyonce Knowles-Carter. And this is not a Beyonce album.

Yeah, I know that’s kinda obvious. But Kelly has been suffocating in Beyonce’s shadow since they were children of destiny. Sometimes, those comparisons to Bey have been unfair. Other times, the fault has lied with Kelly herself.

Who IS Kelly Rowland? Former child star? Sex kitten? Empowered woman? Although she’s an industry veteran, Kelly has yet to show fans who she truly is. So, by default, she’s be characterized as Beyonce’s mini-me.

Finally, on Talk A Good Game, Kelly’s fourth studio album, we finally get to learn about the woman behind the stardom. And the picture isn’t always pretty.

The much-publicized “Dirty Laundry” raises the volume on Kelly’s mostly-quiet past. She frankly admits, while her sister was on stage, she was enraged. The song tells a story of abandonment and domestic abuse and ends with the refrain, “love is pain and pain is love.” It’s that sort of relatable message that has been the missing factor in Kelly’s career, and it shines throughout this album.

The title track tells the story best: “don’t think I can take another broken promise/why do it the hard way when you could just be honest?” The slinky track is equally inquisitive and exasperated. “Down on Love” and “Gone” follow the pattern – Kelly truly finds her niche as a lovelorn tortured soul.
What’s often forgotten about Kelly is that she’s the truth in booth. When she’s given the opportunity, her voice can run the gamut of gentle whispers to vocal powerhouse. The best example here is “I Remember,” as her vocals float blissfully along the track.

Even though Kelly begins to break away from the pack on Talk A Good Game, she sometimes falls back into old habits, where her music struggles to find an identity. “Kisses Down Low” brings nothing new to the table, it’s just a run-of-the-mill radio-friendly track. Anyone from Ciara to Nicki Minaj could have released it with similar results. Destiny’s Child reunites on “You Changed” and she’s immediately upstaged by Sister Bey. Again, the attention is diverted away from the star of the show. And most oddly is the inclusion of “Freak,” a track that note-for-note, beat-for-beat identical to the one Jamie Foxx dropped three years ago! Kelly’s version doesn’t sound as stilted and robotic as Jamie’s, but it’s another example of Kelly playing second fiddle to someone else.

In terms of sequence and impact, “Talk A Good Game” is an odd album that starts of pretty mediocre, quickly ramps up to greatness, then starts to run out of gas near the finish line. Of the three bonus tracks, only the subdued march of “Sky Walker” winds up being memorable.

Even with those mistakes, Talk A Good Game is easily the best album of Kelly’s career. She finally establishes an identity. “Dirty Laundry” proves Kelly has an interesting story to tell. Next time, we need to hear more of it.

Best tracks: “Talk A Good Game,” “Gone,” “Dirty Laundry”

3.5 stars out of 5

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Leg Drop Victim’s Attorney Says Miguel Has Yet To Offer Financial Assistance For Her Medical Expenses

(madamenoire.com) Miguel’s seemingly never-ending soap opera continues to drag on. In case you somehow missed it, the “Adorn” singer’s troubles began during his performance at the 2013 Billboard Music Awards. Caught up in the moment and the musical magic that he was making on stage, the 27-year-old crooner made a running leap and attempted to jump over his audience. Unfortunately, he overestimated his abilities because he came crashing down onto the stage, hitting two fans who stood front row in the audience. One of the victims was Khyati Shah, who according to the AP, is a foreign exchange student from New Zealand. Although Shah told Miguel that she was fine after the show, her attorney later came forward claiming that she’d been suffering from quite a few medical ailments in relation to the incident. He also expressed that she’d  been showing signs of brain damage. 

Although many of us have been holding our breath, waiting to hear the news that Shah has officially filed a lawsuit against Miguel in relation to the incident, her attorney, Vip Bhola, is implying that this isn’t the case. He’s also addressed his client’s dismay after she realized that Miguel has yet to offer any assistance with her rising medical costs. 

“They didn’t rush her to the hospital. Instead they rushed a camera to her and an ice pack.” 

“[They took advantage of a] star-struck, dazed and injured person. She was a fan of Miguel and she’s dumbfounded at how she’s been treated. She had hoped they would truly care about her rather than merely caring about themselves and some imaginary lawsuit they are defending against,” Bhola said.

Shah is currently studying as a double major at UCLA with a concentration in philosophy and politics. According to her attorney, she hoped to return to New Zealand this summer, but her travel plans may more than likely be delayed as a result of the incident and the continuous testing and treatment that she’s been undergoing. Bhola says his client has been experiencing memory and language issues and that she’s having difficulties composing text messages “without them coming out garbled.” This sounds awful!

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Tamar Unveils Her Baby Boy’s Name

(madamenoire.com) Almost one week ago, Tamar Braxton-Herbert and her music producer hubby, Vincent Herbert, welcomed a healthy baby boy into the world. The “Love & War” singer excitedly took to her Twitter page to let fans know that she was officially a new mom.

In like fashion, the new mom took to social media yesterday as well to wish her hubby a happy Father’s Day and reveal their son’s name.

“Happy Father’s Day to the love of my life, my best friend, my husband Vincent Herbert! Our son Logan Vincent Herbert & I are proud to share this day with you!! We love you soooooo much!!❤”

She also share an adorable photo of little Logan with his tiny hand wrapped around his daddy’s fingers.

Source: Instagram

What a sweet, happy family!

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