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Rapper Nipsey Hussle Gunned Down in South L.A.

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1 year ago

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  • Rapper Nipsey Hustle was shot and killed outside his Marathon Clothing shop in South Los Angeles on Sunday.
  • Two other men were shot during the incident and the suspect remains at large.
  • Fans and friends have been mourning the loss of the star both in the community and online.

What Happened?

Grammy-nominated rapper Nipsey Hustle was killed in a shooting outside of his clothing store in Los Angeles on Sunday.

Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti’s critical response team confirmed the news Sunday evening saying, “Today we lost a great musician, Nipsey Hussle.”

The rapper, whose real name was Ermias Asghedom, was shot multiple times in the parking lot at his Marathon Clothing shop in South Los Angeles at around 3:20 p.m. He was pronounced dead at a nearby hospital shortly after.

Two other men were also shot during the incident and police are still searching for the suspect. One of the men injured was also taken to a hospital while the third man declined treatment, according to police Lt. Chris Ramirez.

Police are still piecing together what happened and said they do not have a motive for the shooting, which they are investigating as a homicide. According to the Los Angeles Times, a law enforcement source said Hussle was shot by a young man who opened fire at a close range and then ran to a waiting getaway car.

However, Lt. Ramirez only described the suspect as a black male and said that detectives were still interviewing witnesses and trying to recover security video that might exist.

“At this point, we’re not even sure as to whether he walked up, rode a bicycle or drove up in a car,” Ramirez said.

Shortly before he was killed, the rapper tweeted, “Having strong enemies is a blessing.”

Fans Mourn

Hussle grew up in South L.A. in the 1990s and has since gone on to reach widespread acclaim for his music. Hussle’s debut studio album, “Victory Lap,” was nominated for Best Rap Album at this year’s Grammy Awards.

He has also collaborated with dozens of artists including Snoop Dogg, Drake, Kendrick Lamar, YG, Ty Dolla Sign, Meek Mill, and Young Thug.

A crowd of fans and friends gathered outside Marathon Clothing on Sunday night to mourn the loss of the musician. Many of them carried candles and handmade signs while singing along to his music.

Hussle’s Community Work

Hussle has long been open about upbringing and his association with the Rollin 60s Neighborhood Crips, one of Los Angeles’ largest street gangs. He publicly acknowledged his involvement with the gang in a 2010 interview with Complex magazine.

In an interview last year with Forbes, Hussle talked more about his youth saying, “ignorance and self-destructiveness in the narrative that was pushed on us through music in our generation.”

In more recent years, he has shown interest in technology and community development. He was part of a team of artists and entrepreneurs who created Destination Crenshaw, an open-air museum dedicated to honoring African-American artistic achievement.

L.A. City Councilman Marqueece Harris-Dawson called him “the inspiration” behind its naming.

Hussle was also an investor in a co-working space in South Central Los Angeles called Vector 90. At Vector 90, young people can take classes in science, technology, and mathematics. The project was designed to help address the lack of diversity in STEM fields by providing youth with resources, mentorship, and support.

“In our culture, there’s a narrative that says, ‘Follow the athletes, follow the entertainers,’”Hussle told The LA Times in 2018.

“And that’s cool, but there should be something that says, ‘Follow Elon Musk, follow [Mark] Zuckerberg,’” He continued.

“I think that with me being influential as an artist and young and coming from the inner city, it makes sense for me to be one of the people that’s waving that flag.”

Hussle and two co-owners opened Marathon Clothing in June 2017 as a “smart-store,” complete with a smartphone app which fans could use to buy exclusive content and products.

The rapper was also described as a pillar in the community who often put much of the money he made back into the neighborhood.

L.A. locals said he owned several businesses on the block where he was killed, including a burger restaurant, a barbershop, and a fish market. He was also known to give jobs to residents who were struggling to make ends meet, including some who were homeless.

Hussle even once gave a pair of shoes to every student at 59th Street Elementary School and donated money to renovate the school’s playground and basketball courts. Others said that when a local family lost a loved one to gun violence, he would sometimes help pay for funeral costs.

The rappers commitment to address gang violence in his community was also well known. In fact, he had plans to sit down with the president of the Los Angeles Board of Police Commissioners and the city’s chief of police they day after he was killed to tackle the issue.

According to Steve Soboroff, president of the city’s police commission, Hussle had wanted “to talk about ways he could help stop gang violence and help us help kids.”

His death highlights a surge of violence hitting South Los Angeles, which Police Chief Michael Moore has promised to address.

Celebrities React

Along with fans and friends, Hussle’s death impacted the lives of athletes, actors, and fellow musicians who took to social media to express their condolences.

Hussle is survived by his two children, a son with his girlfriend, Lauren London, and a daughter from a prior relationship.

See what others are saying (NBC News) (The Los Angeles Times) (The Washington Post)

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Taylor Swift Donates to Tennessee LGBT Group

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1 year ago

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April 9, 2019

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  • Taylor Swift donated $113,000 to an LGBT rights group in Tennessee.
  • The group is specifically fighting several bills that are currently floating in various stages of the state’s government and that will impact the rights of the LGBT community.

Taylor’s Donation

Pop star Taylor Swift donated $113,000 dollars on Monday to an LGBT rights group in Tennesse.

Swift’s donation was given to the Tennessee Equality Project, which fights to stop anti-LGBT legislation from passing within the state, and aims to educate the community on equality.

TEP’s Executive Director, Chris Sanders, posted news of Swift’s charitable contribution to Facebook. He thanked her for being a long-time ally and said, “she sees our struggle in Tennessee and continues to add her voice with so many good people.”

With his post, he also shared a hand-written letter Swift addressed to him, where she said she was “inspired” by TEP’s work, specifically noting their stance against the “Slate of Hate.”

Anti-LGBT Bills in Tennessee

The “Slate of Hate” Swift mentions in her letter refers to a series of bills proposed in Tennessee’s General Assembly that could negatively impact the LGBT community. TEP created “The People’s Petition Against the Slate of Hate” to fight against them.

These bills include HB1152 and HB836, which both aim to allow adoption agencies to deny services based on religious beliefs, which TEP called “state-sanctioned discrimination.”

The slate also includes HB1369, which is known as “The Tennessee Natural Marriage Defense Act.” This act defines natural marriage as between a man and a woman and allows courts to void the 2015 Supreme Court ruling that effectively legalized gay marriage.

There are also two pieces of legislation that TEP specifically believes will target the transgender community. The first being HB1151, which is an amendment to the state’s indecent exposure rules that expand it to specifically include incidents in restrooms, fitting rooms, and locker rooms. The TEP called this bill a “devious attempt to criminalize transgender and gender nonconforming people” in these settings.

Then there is also HB1274, which some refer to as the “bathroom bill.” This would require the state’s Attorney General to defend schools that mandate that students and faculty use the bathroom of their “biological sex.” This bill also just passed through Tennesee’s House on Monday.

TEP released a statement on these bills, that was also backed by over 100 religious leaders in the state, ranging from pastors to rabbis.

“As residents of Tennessee, we oppose these bills in the Tennessee General Assembly,” the statement reads. “They promote discrimination rather than justice and demean the worth of LGBTQ people in our state.  We call on people of good will to join us in speaking out for basic fairness.”

Reactions to Swift’s Donation

The “Shake it Off” singer’s donation trended online, and was met with positivity.

Ellen Degeneres tweeted her praise.

The Human Rights Campaign thanked her for supporting their “incredible partners.”

Taylor’s Past Political Actions

This hefty donation is not Swift’s first jump into Tennessee politics. Back in October, she made a long post on Instagram about her choice to use her voice for politics and endorsed Democratic Senate candidate Phil Bredesen.

View this post on Instagram

I’m writing this post about the upcoming midterm elections on November 6th, in which I’ll be voting in the state of Tennessee. In the past I’ve been reluctant to publicly voice my political opinions, but due to several events in my life and in the world in the past two years, I feel very differently about that now. I always have and always will cast my vote based on which candidate will protect and fight for the human rights I believe we all deserve in this country. I believe in the fight for LGBTQ rights, and that any form of discrimination based on sexual orientation or gender is WRONG. I believe that the systemic racism we still see in this country towards people of color is terrifying, sickening and prevalent. I cannot vote for someone who will not be willing to fight for dignity for ALL Americans, no matter their skin color, gender or who they love. Running for Senate in the state of Tennessee is a woman named Marsha Blackburn. As much as I have in the past and would like to continue voting for women in office, I cannot support Marsha Blackburn. Her voting record in Congress appalls and terrifies me. She voted against equal pay for women. She voted against the Reauthorization of the Violence Against Women Act, which attempts to protect women from domestic violence, stalking, and date rape. She believes businesses have a right to refuse service to gay couples. She also believes they should not have the right to marry. These are not MY Tennessee values. I will be voting for Phil Bredesen for Senate and Jim Cooper for House of Representatives. Please, please educate yourself on the candidates running in your state and vote based on who most closely represents your values. For a lot of us, we may never find a candidate or party with whom we agree 100% on every issue, but we have to vote anyway. So many intelligent, thoughtful, self-possessed people have turned 18 in the past two years and now have the right and privilege to make their vote count. But first you need to register, which is quick and easy to do. October 9th is the LAST DAY to register to vote in the state of TN. Go to vote.org and you can find all the info. Happy Voting! 🗳😃🌈

A post shared by Taylor Swift (@taylorswift) on

She also encouraged her followers to head to Vote.org to register before the upcoming midterms, which lead to a surge of registrations. The site said they received 65,000 new registrations in the 24 hours after she posted, which is more than they received throughout the whole month of August.

See what others are saying: (Tennessean) (The Hollywood Reporter) (Jezebel)

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Amanda Seyfried’s Fans Defend Her After Nude Photos Resurface

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1 year ago

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April 8, 2019

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  • Old explicit images of actress Amanda Seyfried have resurfaced online.
  • The photos were stolen from the star and released n 2017 during the second wave of celebrity nude photo leaks.
  • Fans have defended Seyfried in recent days, calling for social media users to stop sharing the photos.

Photos Resurface

Explicit nude photos of actress Amanda Seyfried resurfaced on social media over the weekend, prompting fans to speak out in her defense and condemn the invasion of privacy.

Seyfried is one of several stars who had personal photos stolen and released without consent in 2017. The leak was dubbed “The Fappening 2.0” which is a reference to the first major celebrity nude photo leak that happened in 2014.

Along with Seyfried, the second wave of leaks affected stars like Emma Watson and Jillian Murray. The leaked photos of Seyfried reportedly show the actress performing a sex act on her then-boyfriend, Justin Long.

Seyfried and others have taken legal action to fight back against the invasion of privacy, but the images have been lingering on the internet for years.

Fans React

Many Twitter users make jokes about the photos, calling the actress “goals” and “iconic.”

However, the jokes outraged fans who reminded users that this is a huge invasion of privacy.

See what others are saying: (Hollywood Life) (Celebrity Insider) (The Inquisitor)  

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Suspect in Nipsey Hussle Shooting Identified; Vigil Ends in Chaos

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1 year ago

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April 2, 2019

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  • At least 19 people were injured Monday night after a stampede broke out at a vigil for the late rapper Nipsey Hussle.
  • Later that evening, Los Angeles Police identified the suspect in the killing as 29-year-old Eric Holder.
  • Police are now asking the public for help locating the suspect.

Vigil Turns Into Madness

At least 19 people were injured in a stampede Monday night when a candlelight vigil for the late rapper Nipsey Hussle turned into chaos.

Around 300 fans gathered to mourn the loss of the rapper outside his Marathon Clothing shop in South Los Angeles, the same area where he was gunned down Sunday afternoon.

The memorial ended abruptly when multiple people were trampled and local authorities began forming containment lines.

According to Los Angeles Police Chief Michael Moore, it’s not immediately clear what caused the panic at the memorial. Initial reports suggested that gunfire had broken out, however, police later confirmed that no shots had been fired.

Musician DeAndre Harvey, who was at the memorial, to the LA Times that the event was initially peaceful, with fans and friends passing around a megaphone and sharing stories about Hussle.

Harvey said that things changed after a fight broke out. The fight caused liquor bottles and candles to break, which then caused some in the crowd to think there was a shooting.

“I didn’t hear gunshots,” he said. “I just saw everyone running for their lives.”

Injuries

The Los Angeles Fire Department said that 19 patients were transported to local hospitals. The department said the majority of the patients had non-life threatening “trample injuries.” However, at least two people had critical injuries and two others had serious injuries.

One person was injured after being struck by a vehicle, while another suffered a penetrating wound of an unknown cause.

Police spokeswoman Meghan Aguilar said that one police officer was also injured. She said rocks and bottles were thrown at officers clearing the area and at least one person was detained for disorderly conduct.

Suspect Indentified

Late Monday night, Los Angeles police also released the name of the suspect who they believe shot and killed Hussle and injured two others.

The alleged gunman was identified as 29-year old Eric Holder. According to police, he walked up to the men and fired serval shots at them. He then fled into an alley where a sedan was waiting. The sedan was driven by a woman who has not been identified.

Holder was last seen in a white, four-door, 2016 Chevy Cruze, with the California license plate 7RJD742, the police department said on Twitter.

“Anyone with information related to his whereabouts or this deadly shooting is urged to contact South Bureau Homicide at 323-786-5100.”

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