google-site-verification=cXrcMGa94PjI5BEhkIFIyc9eZiIwZzNJc4mTXSXtGRM Da’Vine Joy Randolph on the career she wants: “You’ve gotta have balls” - 360WISE MEDIA
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Da’Vine Joy Randolph on the career she wants: “You’ve gotta have balls”

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Da’Vine Joy Randolph is a powerhouse in Hollywood, and the actress is finally getting the attention and respect she deserves. Her role in “The Holdovers” earned her an Oscar nomination for Best Supporting Actress, and she also played Mahalia Jackson in “Rustin.”

She joined Grio on the latest episode of “Acting Up with Cortney Wills” to debate what she dropped at the role of Mary Lamb on “The Holdovers” and the way she’s pursuing the career she wants on her own terms.

Da’Vine Joy Randolph attends the 2024 EE BAFTA Film Awards at the Royal Festival Hall on February 18, 2024 in London, England. (Photo: John Phillips/Getty Images)

When she decided to star alongside Paul Giamatti in the film directed by Alexander Payne, Randolph immediately saw her potential.

“Looking at the script, the very first thing I noticed was that there was a whole lot of stuff to do on the page. “I often have to have ongoing conversations with creators about how we can potentially fulfill this role better – not for the sake of more lines, but to keep it authentic, to keep it accurate, to have, you know, a fully realized, complex feel,” he explains. .

“I don’t have to come and fight. I honor and respect all the characters I play because I understand how priceless, invaluable it is to have that opportunity. The most important thing that I always focus on is simply quality,” she said. “So to be able to create this role at this level of filmmakers and creators, with the likes of Paul Giamatti and Alexander Payne, I was so overjoyed that the world, the critics, and also the elites, you know, would see this role being done.”

She also acknowledges that black women do not get many roles of this magnitude.

“So far, only a few women in this industry have this opportunity, Tarajis, Viola… It’s crazy to me,” she said. “So I’m grateful that I get to play a beautiful character on this level of platform.”

Even though she’s been hailed as a rising star this yr, Da’Vine Joy Randolph is not latest to the game.

Dynamic and talented, she can play many alternative characters. She was the voice of Sheila B in Trolls World Tour. She played Rosalyn in “The United States vs. Billie Holiday” and voiced Mama Luna in “Puss in Boots: The Last Wish.” She starred alongside Eddie Murphy in “Dolemite Is My Name” and had a big role in the ill-fated TV drama “Idol.”

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The 37-year-old Yale graduate credits her skills and mindset with making a career filled with roles she’s pleased with.

“It all depends on the choice. And you have to have balls, or you have to have ovaries, as we should actually say. Because it requires strategy, she said. “To stand your ground, you need the will and confidence to believe in yourself and your goals.”

“I spend a whole lot of time the script and the roles. The reason I did “The Idol” is because I attempt to make it as diverse as possible. The people I love are mostly white women when it comes to the opportunities they have to be seen. Let me be clear, what I notice is the reach.

As a plus-size black woman in Hollywood, the world is much more competitive in every way, and Randolph was aware of this challenge at the same time as a student.

“Yale was my first audition. I say this to say that I used to be a toddler. I had no idea about acting… Every two weeks, every Friday, I’d go to the dean’s office on time and say, “Listen, this is the standard I want,” because I used to be the only black woman in my class, she recalls.

“I once cried in his office, saying, ‘I don’t desire to be Lady Pine Sol.’ I don’t desire to be like a cartoon, a stereotype. This scared me. It terrified me,” he says.

Da’Vine Joy Randolph stars as Mary Lamb in Alexander Payne’s The Holdovers, a Focus Features release. (Photo: Seacia Pavao / © 2023 FOCUS FEATURES LLC)

“Being a curvy Black woman, that’s kind of what it was, so I’m not going to be taken seriously.” she said, “I either only do comedy roles or jokes. I’m the butt of the joke.

Fortunately, Randolph has managed to take care of his vision for his career, and it’s paying off.

“It’s a thing where you have to stay true to yourself and be clear about what you want to strive for. And don’t let yourself be convinced otherwise, because when it hits, it hits,” she said. “I don’t want people to start feeling comfortable where they feel like they have me in their hands. Let’s shake it up.”

Watch the full conversation on the latest episode of “Acting Up with Cortney Wills.”

TheGrio will likely be covering the 96th Academy Awards live on Sunday, March 10, so check back for more Oscars coverage.


This article was originally published on : thegrio.com

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Gary Owen’s ex-wife, Kenya Duke, in an interview with “Club Shay Shay” refutes the comedian’s “false narratives” about divorce and children

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Gary Owen

Comedian Gary Owen has been called out for continuing to speak about his ex-wife, Kenya Duke, and their three children who’ve chosen to not contact him.

Last week on his YouTube show “Get Some,” he reported that he had recently seen Duke and warned her about his appearance on Shannon Sharpe’s “Club Shay Shay.”

Gary Owen's ex-wife Kenya Duke is closing down his company
Gary Owen’s ex-wife Kenya Duke shuts down his ‘lies and false narratives’ after ‘Club Shay Shay’ interview. (Photo: Gary Gershoff/WireImage)

Duke hoped he would pass up the opportunity, but he didn’t. Owen revealed shocking details of their divorce, lack of relationship with their children and the fallout he has faced since their public split.

Now Duke speaks up.

Owen’s ex-wife posted on her Instagram and he wrote, “@garyowencomedy it has been 3 years. I’m at all times nice and cool to you. I purposely never make it awkward. I never disturb you.

Adding: “I actually have given you my suggestions about the situation, but you don’t respect their boundaries. That’s why you brought it up again on social media. I do not know what else I can do to enable you. I at all times wish you well.

She also posted a note that read: “In my development, I no longer feel the need to address untruths. The grace and kindness I have shown you is a space to tell lies and false narratives to gain sympathy and attention without correction. You are a great storyteller… sometimes I get sucked into your versions,” and she tagged her ex-husband.

Duke’s response was met with support and criticism. One person said: “I come from a black woman in Kenya. I’ve seen us do that to men one million times until you were honest about the role you played in it and talked bad about your child’s father. It won’t ever recover, you could have to come clean with your part in it.

In response, Duke replied, “Hey, where do you get this? I never spoke ill of their father. I encourage you to contact me. Their relationship with Gary is separate from my relationship with Gary. So what are you talking about?”

One of the stories he told Sharpe was about his father, Gary Owen Sr. Owen said his dad was so offended with him that he fed his ex-wife “filth” during their divorce and took her side. Duke took issue with such stories regarding her and her children.

Another story he told was how he filed for divorce from his ex-wife and that she demanded $44,000 in monthly alimony from him for a yr. Although he stated that he didn’t need to comply with this request, he stated that he would take over all the debt they owed as a family and pay her rent for the first yr after the divorce.

“After the divorce, I took on all the debt. I took it all and it was a lot. I didn’t like being dragged along, saying I was a crap dad,” Duke repeated many times. “And then it was like I left everyone hanging.”

“It wasn’t an accident,” he continued. “I got a text message. I just literally said, “Hey, send me the bills.” I understand,’ and she said, ‘No, that is not how we do it.’

However, based on Owen, Duke didn’t need to move out of their marital home, regardless that it could pose tax problems.

“I made sure that when it was all said and done, after we went to mediation, I believed I might assume the debt. I’ll be sure that you could have enough alimony to be good. By the way, you are really good.

Owen said he also agreed to pay Duke the first yr’s rent once she got her recent apartment, and they agreed on a set amount.

“I just want to stay calm and I want everyone to feel comfortable. I’m not vindictive, I’m not angry, I understand,” he told Sharpe. “It’s love and war. But I think I was very generous in the divorce.”

This is not the first time Duke has spoken out about the comedian. Although she is never lively on social media, she wrote on Instagram in 2023 that she was attempting to get her children to speak with him, but he had broken off relations with them.

“You hit the Internet with a video of the result, but not the cause. I just don’t understand the way it helped anything. At this point I do not know what to imagine or how one can deal with you,” she said.

According to Duke, the “Think Like a Man” actor had an affair and allegedly had relationships with prostitutes, which ultimately led to a divorce. Once she spoke, she also mentioned why they weren’t together. She said Owen neglected his parental responsibilities and took a vacation with nurse Brianna Johnson.

Owen hasn’t responded to her post, but he continues to advertise his “Club Shay Shay” interview on his social media pages.


This article was originally published on : atlantablackstar.com
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Meet the nail artist behind Nicki Minaj’s Pink Friday Press-Ons

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Aliah Anderson/Getty Images

Following the release of Pink Friday 2, Nicki Minaj has dug her crystal-encrusted claws back into the world of beauty. This time the queen of rap has been released Pink Friday nails after the premiere was announced at the end of last 12 months. Her first collection, released a couple of months ago, featured 11 printed designs containing a whopping 300 gems. To help her bring this latest nail empire to life, she hired her own personal nail technician, Yvette Garcia as creative director.

“I started doing her nails about 5 years ago” Garcia– also known for her collaborations with Rosalia, Normani and Kelly Rowland – says ESSENCE. “When she decided to start Pink Friday, she knew she wanted me to be a part of it.” This is sensible, especially since Garcia is the artist answerable for Barb’s most iconic nail art moments; turning on “Princess Diana” remix music video.VMAs and on the cover.

And after the birth of her son in 2020, Minaj became the inspiration for luxury easy nails. After the baby was born, “we slowly started using custom clasps for her. Everyone was constantly replicating our designs,” says Garcia. “She realized there was a place for press-in nails that was different from everything else.”

Now Pink Friday Nails bridges the gap between hundred-dollar custom nails and reasonably priced drugstore presses, bringing Minaj’s most iconic moments to your fingertips. For example, her viral VMA nails were considered one of the inspirations for some great press.

“Her toenail fell off at the VMAs and a fan sold it $55,000 on eBaysays Garcia. It was a defining moment that the duo jokingly came up with “The Queen’s Ransom”, selling for lower than triple figures for Pink Friday Nails. Meanwhile, kawaii nails was inspired by her music video “Super Freaky Girl” and the otherworldly world chrome nails shout “Spaceships.” “It’s a way for people to feel a part of her,” Garcia says

To make it even higher, the nails are extremely top quality and truly stick. “Unlike other thin presses, ours are much stronger,” he says. “We had to start with a good base that would hold all the big, beautiful amulets.” To do that, they’d to make custom pressure molds. “We didn’t find anything that met our standards,” he says.

Additionally, the nails are rigorously packed in an especially charming pink box equipped with a nail file, cuticle pusher and nail glue. “Both Nicki and I are perfectionists, so we knew we had to provide the highest quality for everyone,” adds Garcia. “We stand out and fill a space that was very much needed.”


This article was originally published on : www.essence.com
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We need to talk about Kat Williams because something is missing

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Touré, theGrio.com

We need to talk truthfully about Katt Williams because I watched his latest special on Netflix.I woke up Foke” and I actually have questions. Williams is undoubtedly a comedy icon. We love him. But there’s something missing in his performance and I feel a variety of persons are afraid to say it. In the spirit of comedy, where nothing is unimaginable to say, I’ll say this. In a second. I actually have to prepare for this. I’m afraid of what you all will say. I don’t desire Katt and Kendrick Lamar with me.

You know the old joke about how you’ll be able to go to a Chinese restaurant and eat a whole meal and still be hungry half-hour later? Well, when I’m watching a comedy special, I don’t desire the comedy to slip out of my mind half-hour into the show. I need greater than just laughter; I need jokes, a minimum of one which I can walk away and think about. He said x, then y, then blam! – that was an incredible point. I would wonder why saying x after which y then the punch line will work. I need these well-crafted moments that I can repeat to myself, or perhaps friends, to remind me how good this comic was. Dave Chappelle, Chris Rock, Trevor Noah and others will at all times give it to me. Or Williams? Sigh.

I feel there are two varieties of comedians – there are individuals who have great material and there are individuals with a funny vibe whose whole stage presence is so funny they might read the phone book and it will be funny. No one might be this or that; you need to have a few of either side, but some comics are much heavier on one side than the opposite.

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Chappelle is each. It’s the identical with Wanda Sykes. Rock is a way more material guy. His work is fastidiously crafted and I feel that is what he needs to kill. Tracy Morgan, alternatively, is more like a phone book. His energy is so fun that he can get through a set exuding fun energy. Bernie Mac had good material – a few of his work was really smart — but his success was really based on his vibe, his voice and his energy. He could make a restaurant menu sound funny.

Williams is probably the largest comic within the phone book straight away. His vibe, energy and voice make his comedy come alive. The way he pronounces the N-word is hysterical due to his melodic voice and Midwestern accent. Plus, greater than anyone else, he plays a personality on stage – a troublesome, supremely confident, super black man who may or will not be a pimp. This character adds lots to the humor. Seeing this little man imagine in himself a lot is each hilarious and galvanizing. It makes us want to root for him. It’s interesting that Williams relies so heavily on playing a personality in an era where many comics try to deconstruct artifice and wish to appear to be he’s just being himself.

I’ve said that almost all comics have either side of the dichotomy – funny atmosphere and material – but I feel like Williams is so good at giving off a funny atmosphere that he’s began to omit the jokes. This wasn’t the case early in his profession, but at the tip of “Woke Foke” (and his earlier Netflix special “World War III”) I said, wait a minute, where are the jokes? Williams gives us the wisecracks which are a key a part of a comic book’s arsenal, but as a substitute of real, solid jokes, he focuses on Katt, his voice, and his funny energy. He doesn’t put within the work to write great jokes and I do know he can do it. I need this from him.

I’m afraid the subsequent time Williams appears on “Club Shay Shay” I’ll be verbally assaulted, but I feel like he had more well-crafted comedic thoughts on that couch than on stage. A extremely great comedy show might be printed on a bit of paper and skim by another person and still be funny. If we printed Williams’ special, we might see that there are few real jokes in it, which is a testament to how funny he is. He can pick up a whisper of fabric in an hour. But I wish this truly talented comic would return to making real jokes.



This article was originally published on : thegrio.com
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