Month: February 2017

Finally, at long last, we have another iconic Rihanna moment.

Since the Grammys rarely get anything right, the singer’s latest album “Anti” was criminally underrepresented at this year’s ceremony. But RiRi took a page out of Beyoncé’s book and turned lemons into lemonade. 

At the 59th annual Grammy Awards Sunday, Rihanna was spotted having the best time sipping out of a bejeweled flask all night long. Hey, you’d need some alcohol too if you were forced to sit through almost four hours of your competitors winning awards that belonged to you!

Behold the glory that is peak Rihanna below. 

— This feed and its contents are the property of The Huffington Post, and use is subject to our terms. It may be used for personal consumption, but may not be distributed on a website.

Source: HuffPost Black Voices

Keep calm, everybody. Deep breaths.

At the 59th annual Grammy Awards on Sunday, Beyoncé treated the world to a taste of her album “Lemonade” with a performance befitting a pregnant goddess like herself. 

You’d think that after a year of flawless Beyoncé moments, we’d all become accustomed to witnessing the singer do her thing, but absolutely nobody kept their cool, most especially celebrities. 

Famous types watching in the Staples Center and those viewing at home were feeling some type of way after her performance and took to Twitter to let the world know.

Check out some of the best celebrity reactions below: 

— This feed and its contents are the property of The Huffington Post, and use is subject to our terms. It may be used for personal consumption, but may not be distributed on a website.

Source: HuffPost Black Voices

Beyoncé took home the award for Best Urban Contemporary Album at the 59th annual Grammy Awards on Sunday night (to the surprise of no one). 

Bey won for her album “Lemonade,” which basically broke the internet when it was released last April. During her acceptance speech, the expectant mother thanked her daughter, Blue Ivy, and husband, Jay Z, before speaking about her album and its overarching themes.

“I thank God for my family, my wonderful husband, and my beautiful daughter, my fans for bringing me so much happiness and support,” she said. “We all experience pain and loss and often we become inaudible. My intention for the film and album was to create a body of work that will give a voice to our pain, our struggles, our darkness and our history.” 

Queen B continued, noting that the album was meant to “confront issues that make us uncomfortable.” 

“It’s important for me to show images to my children that reflect their beauty so they can grow up in a world where they look in the mirror ― first through their own families, as well as the news, the Super Bowl, the Olympics, the White House and the Grammys ― and see themselves,” she said, adding, “I want that for every child of every race, and I feel it’s vital that we learn from the past and recognize our tendencies to repeat our mistakes.” 

Bey accepted the award after shutting the house down with her stunning performance, which featured hypnotic images of the pregnant superstar nearly nude, save for a halo-like headpiece and body jewelry. She sang “Love Drought” and “Sandcastles,” and for a brief moment, made us forget we were watching the Grammys. 

Thanks, Bey. 

— This feed and its contents are the property of The Huffington Post, and use is subject to our terms. It may be used for personal consumption, but may not be distributed on a website.

Source: HuffPost Black Voices

Katy Perry has always spoken her mind.

On Sunday night, she took the opportunity to make a political statement while performing her new song “Chained to the Rhythm” at the Grammy Awards. 

The singer, who was a vocal supporter of Hillary Clinton, wore a white pantsuit with an armband that read “PERSIST” during her performance with Skip Marley, finishing out the act by yelling out “No hate!” while standing against a backdrop that showed the beginning of the Constitution.

While the statement wasn’t explicitly about President Donald Trump’s administration, we can read between the lines. Her armband seems like a nod to Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell’s quote about Elizabeth Warren’s attempt to read a letter criticizing Jeff Sessions, which soon became a feminist rallying cry: “She was warned. She was given an explanation. Nevertheless, she persisted.”

Perry released the song on Friday and tweeted that we are now in the era of “purposeful pop.”

Correction: An earlier version of this story misidentified Skip Marley as Ziggy Marley.

— This feed and its contents are the property of The Huffington Post, and use is subject to our terms. It may be used for personal consumption, but may not be distributed on a website.

Source: HuffPost Black Voices

Even if you’re the world’s biggest music fan, the Grammy Awards can be tough to get through. Three hours of awards, speeches, performances and endless clapping is quite a stretch to endure.

Thankfully, this year we had Blue Ivy Carter (rocking a Prince getup, no less) in the front row, hanging out with her dad Jay Z, taking in mom Beyoncé’s performance, showing off her sparkly purse and ducking into James Corden’s “Sweet Caroline” moment.

Let’s recap the night — which was really Blue’s night, if we’re being honest — with some of our favorite moving images from GIPHY.

First, she made sure to stand up and clap for her mom’s performance.

Then she hopped a ride on “Carpool Karaoke.”

Jay Z made sure she was watching when her mom won Best Urban Contemporary Album.

She also made sure to show off her cool sparkly purse to her friend.

Thanks for making us smile, Blue!

— This feed and its contents are the property of The Huffington Post, and use is subject to our terms. It may be used for personal consumption, but may not be distributed on a website.

Source: HuffPost Black Voices

Schoolboy Q showed up to Sunday’s 59th Grammy Awards rocking a neon pink hoodie which powerfully boasted the phrase “GIRL POWER.” 

The look was rather unexpected coming from Schoolboy, whose lyrics in songs like “By Any Means,” can be perceived as misogynistic. But with a bright pink hoodie and daughter Joyce Hanley in tow, the night’s image was a long way from his music persona. 

Schoolboy, who was nominated for Best Rap Performance and Best Rap Album, was actually dressed down in comparison to the pre-teen who rocked a more upscale look in a pink Gucci suit.

According to an interview with Zane Lowe on Beats 1, the fashionista was Q’s primary motive for attending the show as he opted out of the 2015 awards ceremony. 

Check out the pre-Grammy photos posted to Schoolboy’s Instagram account below: 

— This feed and its contents are the property of The Huffington Post, and use is subject to our terms. It may be used for personal consumption, but may not be distributed on a website.

Source: HuffPost Black Voices

Chance The Rapper scored big at the Grammy Awards on Sunday night.

The 23-year-old Chicago rapper won his first ever Grammy award for Best Rap Performance for the track “No Problem” earlier today.  During the primetime ceremony, he also took the home the prestigious awards for Best New Artist and Best Rap Album. The rapper, who earned seven Grammy nominations this year, released his mixtape “Coloring Book” to mainstream success last year and has been on a wildly successful streak since. Then, there’s this impressive fact: 

“Glory be to God. I claim this victory in the name of the Lord,” he said onstage accepting the award for Best New Artist. The rapper also acknowledged what the accomplishment means to him as an independent artist. “I know that people think independence means you do it by yourself but independence means freedom. I do it with these folks right here,” he said. 

There truly seems to be no stopping his #BlackBoyJoy, a phrase Chance himself has embraced and helped to popularize on social media. Fellow rapper Drake, who also won a Grammy on Sunday for Best Rap Song on Sunday, sent along his congratulatory remarks to share in the delight ― which Chance shared on Instagram shortly after. 

Chance The Rapper, who is a vocal advocate for equality and has worked alongside social justice causes, also joins singer Solange as a first-time ever Grammy-award recipient. The “Don’t Touch My Hair” singer also won her first Grammy award on Sunday for Best R&B performance. 

Congrats to them all and welcome to the club, Chance. 

— This feed and its contents are the property of The Huffington Post, and use is subject to our terms. It may be used for personal consumption, but may not be distributed on a website.

Source: HuffPost Black Voices

Beyoncé single-handedly saved the world with her pregnancy announcement, and then she saved the 2017 Grammy Awards with a golden performance look that may be yet another Givenchy collaboration. 

The “Formation” singer skipped the pre-show red carpet, then wowed the crowd in a sheer long-sleeved dress that she paired with a giant gold headpiece, multiple choker necklaces and massive hoop earrings. Even her nails and her microphone were gold.

She was glowing. 

Naturally, her baby bump ― it’s twins! ― was front and center as she sang “Love Drought” and “Sandcastles,” and the internet was loving it.  

We’re not worthy. 

— This feed and its contents are the property of The Huffington Post, and use is subject to our terms. It may be used for personal consumption, but may not be distributed on a website.

Source: HuffPost Black Voices

Beyoncé began her 59th annual Grammy Awards performance on Sunday night with a simple question: “Do you remember being born?” 

After a touching introduction from her mother Tina Knowles, the singer went on to gift the world with two songs off her latest album “Lemonade,” which was nominated for nine Grammy awards. Motherhood was a central theme throughout the performance, as the singer raised questions about what it means to be a mother and a daughter. 

The first thing the audience saw were hypnotic images of the pregnant star nearly nude except for a gold headpiece and body jewelry, before the queen herself appeared on stage. 

Beyoncé kicked off the performance with a rendition of “Love Drought.” Seated at the head of a large table flanked by dancers wearing gauzy dresses, Bey, at one point, tilted her chair all the way back, until she was singing nearly upside down.

(Side note: WHEN WILL YOUR FAVE?)

She then transitioned into the ballad “Sandcastles,” as she stayed seated while holding her growing baby bump. 

The performance marks Beyoncé’s first appearance since making the world stop with a pregnancy announcement. She and husband Jay Z revealed that they are expecting twins with a jaw-dropping photoshoot.

Once she was done breaking all of our hearts, Bey ended the song with a message to all those watching around the world: “If we’re gonna heal, let it be glorious.” 

Watch her performance below: 

— This feed and its contents are the property of The Huffington Post, and use is subject to our terms. It may be used for personal consumption, but may not be distributed on a website.

Source: HuffPost Black Voices

The #WhyIResist hashtag exploded on Twitter after Sen. Jeff Sessions (R-Ala.) was confirmed as attorney general on Wednesday night. 

The hashtag had popped up before this week, as people have taken to expressing their disapproval of President Donald Trump, his administration and how he’s shaping America. 

But many people apparently felt their desire to voice resistance surge after the confirmation of Sessions ― who many civil rights groups have opposed due to his record on laws pertaining to voting rights and hate crimes.

The official Women’s March Twitter page on Wednesday night asked followers to “tell us why you resist.”

The responses to that tweet, and others including the #WhyIResist hashtag, explain why people across the country are resisting the administration and its policies on a wide variety of issues. 

 For more #WhyIResist tweets, you can go here.

— This feed and its contents are the property of The Huffington Post, and use is subject to our terms. It may be used for personal consumption, but may not be distributed on a website.

Source: HuffPost Black Voices