On Tuesday, Cardi B was awarded nearly $3 million in punitive damages and attorneys’ fees in her libel lawsuit against YouTuber Tasha K. The award comes just one day after a federal jury found that Kebe must pay the rapper at least $1.25 million in damages. Cardi’s lawsuit claimed that Kebe lied about her STD history, drug usage, and family life. A jury found Kebe liable for defamation, invasion of privacy, and intentionally inflicting emotional distress.

Cardi was awarded $1 million on Monday to cover her pain, suffering and reputational damage, as well as $250,000 for medical expenses. On Tuesday, the jurors ordered Kebe to pay an additional $1 million in punitive damages and her company Kebe Studios LLC to pay another $500,000. On top of that, Kebe is required to reimburse Cardi for the costs she incurred from filing the lawsuit, which amounts to a whopping $1,338,753.47 — bringing the total in damages to nearly $4.1 million.

In the 2019 lawsuit, Cardi alleged that Kebe — who goes by ‘Tasha K’, and has 1 million subscribers on her channel unWinewithTashaK — became obsessed with her, and ran a “malicious campaign” about her that included falsely accusing Cardi B of testing positive for herpes and having substance abuse issues. The complaint said that Kebe ‘intended to capitalize on the false information, and knew posting about Cardi B would draw substantially more viewers to her content than she typically garners.”  Kebe countersued for $3 million, alleging that Cardi B had sent fans to harass her; however the judge dismissed the suit saying there was no evidence of those claims.

Cardi B Wins ANOTHER $3 Million in Defamation Case Against YouTube Blogger

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Chelsea Handler is set to star in a brand new comedy series at Peacock, based on her memoir, “Life Will Be the Death of Me”, which was released in 2019.

Handler will star in the half-hour show, as well as executive produce with Liz Tuccillo of Chelsea Handler Productions.  The show will ‘center on Chelsea in crisis. She goes into therapy to become a nicer and less entitled person. Mayhem and calamity ensue as she overcorrects, stumbles, regresses, and loses her marbles on her journey to self-improvement.’   Exec producers also include Annapurna Pictures’ Sue Naegle and Megan Ellison, Chelsea Handler Productions’ Molly Burke with Jackie Sosa as co-exec producer.

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Netflix gave fans a sneak peek at Season 2 of Bridgerton by releasing eight new teaser photos on Twitter of what is coming up on the series’ upcoming sophomore season.

One photo shows Kate (Simone Ashley) and Anthony (Jonathan Bailey) having a romantic moment on the dance floor.  Another photo has Kate shown with her sister, Edwina (Charithra Chandran), while Anthony is shown fencing with his brothers and having a talk with his sister, Daphne (Phoebe Dynevor).

Other teasers include pictures featuring Queen Charlotte (Golda Rosheuval) reading Lady Whistledown, Penelope (Nicola Coughlan) and Eloise (Claudia Jessie) in conversation, and the Featherington women dressed in formal attire.

Season 2 of Bridgerton will premiere Friday, March 25 on Netflix.

https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/tv/tv-news/bridgerton-season-2-photos-1235077390/

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The Smoker’s Club Fest 2022 released their star-studded lineup featuring headliners Kid Cudi, A$AP Rocky and Playboi Carti, scheduled to take place on April 30 at the Glen Helen Amphitheater in San Bernardino.  The fest will also feature artists including Wiz Khalifa, 2 Chainz, Yung Lean, Rico Nasty, Wale, Ferg, Schoolboy Q and several others.

“WE’RE BACK,” the music festival wrote alongside its tour poster on Twitter, listing the stacked lineup. Tickets are on sale now and start at $223, while VIP entry for the music event costs $409.  The festival is also offering several hotel and ticket packages that will start at $429 USD.

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Cypress Hill has announced the release date for their tenth studio album, ‘Back in Black’ which is set to drop on March 18th. Back in Black is produced by Black Milk, and in addition, the band has stated that a new documentary on the group, titled Insane In The Brain: Cypress Hill, will be released in the spring.

Cypress Hill also released a new single, “Bye Bye,” featuring rapper Dizzy Wright. “Bye Bye” follows the release of two other singles from Back in Black — “Open Ya Mind” and “Champion Sound.”

Cypress Hill’s frontman, B-Real explained that “Bye Bye” is meant to be “a statement. In a roundabout way, we spoke to the politics of today. Being lulled into this dreamworld by the government. Trying to blind us from the separation that they created, to put us to sleep while they do whatever they want.”

Take a listen to “Bye Bye” – here.

https://www.billboard.com/music/music-news/cypress-hill-10th-album-back-in-black-bye-bye-song-1235021693/

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Regina King is mourning the loss of her son, musician Ian Alexander Jr., who died by suicide at age 26.  A statement from King read:  “Our family is devastated at the deepest level by the loss of Ian. He is such a bright light who cared so deeply about the happiness of others. Our family asks for respectful consideration during this private time.”

Ian had just celebrated his 26th birthday last Wednesday.  He was King’s only child, whom she shared with her ex-husband, record producer Ian Alexander Sr.  Alexander Jr. was an up-and-coming musician and DJ, who performed as “Desduné” according to his Instagram page. He had released a new single, “Green Eyes,” on Jan. 7 and had performances scheduled in Los Angeles later this month, including at Avalon Hollywood’s Breaking Sound event on Jan. 28.

The 51-year-old King and her son were extremely close and even had matching tattoos together that read “unconditional love” in Aramaic.  The mother and son often attended red carpet events together. King previously told People that her bond with her son meant everything to her:  “You don’t know what unconditional love is. You may say you do, but if you don’t have a child, you don’t know what that is. When you experience it, it’s the most fulfilling [thing] ever.”  On her 50th birthday last year, Ian wrote a heartfelt tribute to his mother, sharing in an Instagram post: “To have you as my mother is the greatest gift I could ask for. To be all that you are while always having the time to be there, love and support me unconditionally is truly remarkable.”

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The Fugees have canceled their reunion tour due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.  The group — consisting of Wyclef Jean, Pras Michel and Lauryn Hill — announced on Instagram that “our anniversary tour will not be able to happen. The continued Covid pandemic has made touring conditions difficult, and we want to make sure we keep our fans and ourselves healthy and safe. If opportunity, public safety and scheduling allow, we hope to be able to revisit this again sometime soon.”

The statement also acknowledged how “grateful” the band was to be able to perform their intimate pop-up show (the group’s first live show in 15 years) which took place in New York City on Sept. 22 at Pier 17 for Global Citizen Live. Attendees had to score tickets through an online raffle. The Fugees 12-city tour, which had been rescheduled from November, was slated to begin on March 2 in Chicago, ending in Oakland on March 29.

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Pepsi and The Super Bowl have teamed up to release a teaser for the forthcoming halftime spectacular featuring all of this years’ performers—Eminem, Snoop Dogg, Dr. Dre, Mary J. Blige, and Kendrick Lamar.

Songs featured in the preview include Dr. Dre & Snoop Dogg’s “Still Dre,” Dr. Dre & Snoop Dogg’s “Next Episode,” Eminem’s “Rap God,” Mary J. Blige’s “Family Affair,” Kendrick Lamar’s “HUMBLE.,” as well as 2Pac’s “California Love.”

The halftime show is set for February 13, 2022 at SoFi Stadium Stadium in Inglewood, California, produced by Jay-Z’s Roc Nation and presented by Pepsi in conjunction with the NFL and NBC.  You can watch the trailer – here.

https://hiphopdx.com/news/id.67385/title.kendrick-lamar-eminem-dr-dre-snoop-dogg-mary-j-blige-star-in-super-bowl-halftime-show-trailer

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NBC’s ‘Saturday Night Live’ has announced that Katy Perry will serve as the musical guest on the January 29 edition of the long-running late night show, with Willem Dafoe making his hosting debut.

The Jan. 29 show will mark Perry’s fourth time appearing on “SNL” as a musical guest. Perry is currently headlining her first Las Vegas residency, titled ‘Katy Perry: Play,’ at the Theatre at Resorts World Last Vegas, which currently runs through March. Dafoe is currently on the big screen reprising his role as Green Goblin in the film “Spider Man: No Way Home”.

SNL also recently announced that SNL alum Will Forte will return to make his hosting debut on Jan. 22, with Måneskin serving as musical guest.

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Rock singer and actor Meat Loaf has died at age 74. His death was announced in a statement posted on his official Facebook page early Friday morning.

The statement read: “Our hearts are broken to announce that the incomparable Meat Loaf passed away tonight with his wife Deborah by his side. Daughters Pearl and Amanda and close friends have been with him throughout the last 24 hours. We know how much he meant to so many of you and we truly appreciate all of the love and support as we move through this time of grief in losing such an inspiring artist and beautiful man. From his heart to your souls…don’t ever stop rocking!”

Born Marvin Lee Aday in Dallas in 1947, Meat Loaf enjoyed a successful career spanning six decades. Meat Loaf’s 1977 debut album “Bat Out of Hell” remains one of the top-selling albums of all time. He sold more than 100 million albums worldwide, with his songs “Paradise by the Dashboard Light,” and “Two Out of Three Ain’t Bad” becoming rock classics, and he won a 1994 Grammy Award for the song “I’d Do Anything for Love (But I Won’t Do That).”  Meat Loaf also appeared in over 65 movies, including iconic roles in “The Rocky Horror Picture Show” and “Fight Club.”

Meat Loaf is survived by his wife Deborah Gillespie, and daughters Pearl and Amanda Aday.

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