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Lady Gaga reflected on George Floyd’s death and blasted President Donald Trump in a statement the singer posted Saturday on social media.
“I have a lot of things to say about this, but the first thing I want to say is I’m afraid to say anything that will incite further anger, although that is precisely the emotion that’s justified,” Gaga wrote.
“I do not wish to contribute to more violence, I wish to contribute to a solution. I am outraged by the death of George Floyd as I have been by the deaths of exponentially too many black lives over hundreds of years that have been taken from us in this country as a result of systemic racism and the corrupt system that supports it.”
Gaga continued, “The voices of the black community have been silenced for too long and that silence has proven deadly time and time again. And no matter what they do to protest, they are still meet with no compassion by the leaders that are meant to protect them. Everyday people in America are racist, that’s a fact.”
Like Taylor Swift a few days earlier, the Chromatica singer also blamed the Trump administration for the boiling over of long-simmering race issues in America.
“We have known for a long time that President Trump has failed. He holds the most powerful office in the world, yet offers nothing but ignorance and prejudice while black lives continue to be taken,” Gaga wrote. “We have known he is a fool, and a racist, since he took office. He is fueling a system that is already rooted in racism, and racist activity, and we can all see what is happening. It’s time for a change.”
Lady Gaga joins artists like Billie Eilish, Beyonce and Rihanna to speak out in the aftermath of George Floyd’s death and following the arrest of former Minnesota police officer Derek Chauvin on third-degree murder charges.
“This isn’t justice. This is an epic tragedy that defines our country and has for a long time,” Gaga wrote. “I am sad. I am angry. And I will use the words that I can find to try to communicate what needs to change in as an effective and non-violent way as possible for me.”
Read Gaga’s full statement below:
— Lady Gaga (@ladygaga) May 31, 2020
Atari’s repeatedly delayed VCS console is nearly ready two years after its announcement. The team has revealed that the first 500 (or so) Atari VCS production models should leave the factory by mid-June. That will still leave the majority of Atari’s 11,597 crowdfunding backers waiting, but the team “cautiously” expects that production for those will get underway this summer now that the parts are available.
Things are still falling into place. Atari has yet to detail the full software lineup for the VCS even with a game subscription deal locked in. Nonetheless, this is good news for backers worried that multiple delays, changing specs and behind-the-scenes drama might prevent the system from shipping.
Whether or not the VCS succeeds is another matter. It’s a relatively powerful device for the money with an embedded Ryzen chip and some PC-like functionality, but there’s no guarantee it’ll be the nostalgia-inducing console of your dreams, particularly if the Atari 2600 doesn’t mean much to you.
John Legend is speaking out regarding his friendship with Kanye West.
In a new interview with U.K.'s The Sunday Times, the "All of Me" singer, 41, addressed his friendship with West, 42, and clarified if there was a rift between the longtime friends given the rapper's vocal support for President Donald Trump.
"I don’t think we’re less friends because of the Trump thing," Legend explained. "I just think we’re doing our own thing. He’s up in Wyoming. I’m here in L.A. We’ve both got growing families and I no longer have a formal business relationship with him as an artist, so I think it’s just part of the natural cycle of life."
Legend said that he and West "never talked about politics before," adding that it was "never a part" of their interaction.
"Our interaction was almost always about creativity and music," he shared. "He’s also in a different place musically. He’s doing gospel music. That’s what he’s focused on right now, designing his clothes, so we’re in different places.”
Legend has been a longtime friend of West's, even attending the rapper's 2014 wedding to Kim Kardashian West. But in 2018, the two men sparred online about West's support for Trump.
At the time, West tweeted a screenshot of a conversation he had with Legend, who, along with his wife Chrissy Teigen, had publicly supported Hilary Clinton during the 2016 election.
"Hey it’s JL. I hope you’ll reconsider aligning yourself with Trump,” Legend seemingly wrote in a recent text message exchange. “You’re way too powerful and influential to endorse who he is and what he stands for. As you know, what you say really means something to your fans. They are loyal to you and respect your opinion.”
Legend continued: “So many people who love you feel so betrayed right now because they know the harm that Trump’s policies cause, especially to people of color. Don’t let this be part of your legacy. You’re the greatest artist of our generation.”
West replied to the text: “I love you John and I appreciate your thoughts. You bringing up my fans or my legacy is a tactic based on fear used to manipulate my free thought.”
But just days later, the pair seemingly put their differences aside when West shared a selfie of he and Legend from Teigen‘s baby shower. “We got love. Agree to disagree,” West captioned the photo.
As tensions between protestors and law enforcement build in the wake of George Floyd's death, Lady Gaga is offering some words of encouragement to those who remain angry and frustrated.
Gaga, who recently dropped her new album, Chromatica, took to social media Saturday night (May 30) to share her thoughts about the death of Floyd at the hands of a Minneapolis police officer. In her lengthy post, the singer encouraged support for the black community and criticized President Trump's handling of racial tension during his time in office.
"Right now is a critical time for the black community to be supported by all other communities so we can put a stop to something that is intrinsically wrong by the grace of God or whatever creator you do or do not believe in," Gaga wrote on Instagram. "I urge people to speak gently to each other, speak with passion, inspiration, and impress the importance of this issue until the systems that keep us sick die, instead of people we love."
Lady Gaga joins a long list of celebrities speaking out after Floyd's death, including Beyonce, Rihanna, Billie Eilish, Ariana Grande and Chance the Rapper.
Last week, a video of the unarmed black man's death surfaced revealing Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin kneeling on Floyd for eight minutes. Chauvin was later charged with third-degree murder and manslaughter in the death of Floyd.
Over the weekend, dozens of protests -- some of which turned violent -- broke out in major cities like Los Angeles, New York, San Jose, Atlanta and Washington, D.C. In her note, Gaga denounced violence as a solution to the problem and pledged to peacefully stand up for the rights of her fellow citizens.
"We MUST show love for the black community. As a white, privileged woman, I take an oath to stand by that. We haven't, as a privileged community, done enough to fight racism and stand up for those people who are being killed by it," the singer wrote. "This isn't justice. This is an epic tragedy that defines our country and has for a long time. I am sad. I am angry. And I will use the words that I can find to try to communicate what needs to change in as an effective and non-violent way as possible for me."
Read Gaga's full post below.
Never mind a text character crashing your phone — if you’re on Android, your choice of wallpaper could be a larger problem. Users have discovered (via Android Authority and 9to5Google) that an innocuous landscape photo is “soft-bricking” some Android phones when it’s used as a background. Your phone isn’t completely dead if it happens, but it’ll get stuck in a loop that turn the lock screen on and off, even after a reboot. Your recourses are to either use safe mode to delete the photo file or use the bootloader to reset the device entirely.
The issue may come down to the color spaces your phone supports and how they’re handled. Dylan Roussel from 9to5 discovered that the source image uses the RGB color space instead of Android’s preferred sRGB, and Android 10 doesn’t convert it where the Android 11 preview does — that causes problems any time an incompatible phone has to display the picture, which is a problem if you’ve just set the photo as your wallpaper. Other images will likely lead to the same issue.
We’ve asked Google for comment. This is easy enough to avoid if you’re aware of it. It could be a serious problem if pranksters trick unsuspecting people, however, especially if they don’t know how to recover. If nothing else, it’s a reminder to get wallpapers only from sources you trust.
... if the current display supports it. If it isn't supported, it will replace the Color Space of the image to SRGB, and it will log its current Color Space.
This is why it doesn't crash on the Pixel 4 XL. However, on the Pixel 3 XL with Android 10...
— Dylan Roussel (@evowizz) May 31, 2020
WACO, Texas A group associated with Black Lives Matter held a largely peaceful demonstration at the Waco suspension bridge Sunday afternoon.
The multi-racial and multi-generational group said it was raising awareness about what it says is police brutality against African Americans.
Similar, although more violent protests, have erupted in cities across Texas and the United States in the wake of the police custody death of George Floyd in Minneapolis.
Several governors, including Texas Governor Greg Abbott, have activated national guard troops in response to rioting and looting.
Group leaders in Waco on Sunday led the group in chants of "No justice. No peace. No racist police."
The group also chanted "Hey ho, hey ho, these racist cops have got to go."
Several area law enforcement officers and leaders have condemned the actions of Minneapolis Police officers involved in the incident that led to Floyd's death.
“I watched the whole tape several times and I can tell you what that officer did to his suspect was way out of line and not at all acceptable,” said Matt Cawthon, a retired Texas Ranger who served for more than 40 years.
Video recorded on Memorial Day in Minneapolis has gone viral. It shows a city police officer restraining the 46-year-old Floyd.
Minneapolis Police Officer Derek Chauvin placed his knee on Floyd’s neck and left it there for at least eight minutes.
The footage recorded by a bystander shows Chauvin with his knee on Floyd's neck as Floyd gasps for breath on the ground with his face against the pavement and the officer refuses to move even after Floyd said he couldn’t breathe and stopped speaking.
Floyd was pronounced dead when he reached the hospital.
Chauvin has been charged with third degree murder and manslaughter. He and three other Minneapolis Police officers involved in the arrest have been fired.
Billie Eilish, 18, can’t believe how President Donald Trump, 73, is reacting to the protests going on in Minneapolis, Minnesota in response to the tragic death of George Floyd, an African American man who was filmed telling a police officer he couldn’t breathe as the officer kept his knee on his neck for almost nine minutes during an arrest on May 25. The singer took to Instagram to share a repost of one of Trump’s latest controversial tweets about the protesters and she made sure to add expletive-filled captions of her own shocked opinion.
“OUR OWN PRESIDENT SAID THIS. OUR. OWN. PRESIDENT,” her caption started. “ARE YOU DEAD F**KING SERIUS????? EAT A HUGE F**KING D**K AND CHOKE ON IT.” Billie also shared similar posts on her Instagram page that addressed her opinions on the Black Lives Matter movement, including why it’s important and why “white people” are considered “privileged.”
“IF I HEAR ONE MORE WHITE PERSON SAY ‘aLL liVes maTter’ ONE MORE F**KING TIME IM GONNA LOSE MY F**KING MIND,” she wrote at the beginning of one post before going into details about the difference between how white and black people are treated in society. “SOCIETY GIVES YOU PRIVILEGE JUST FOR BEING WHITE. YOU CAN BE POOR, YOU CAN BE STRUGGLING..AND STILL YOUR SKIN COLOR IS GIVING YOU MORE PRIVILEGE THAN YOU REALIZE.”
The “party favor” crooner also went on to again address Trump’s use of the word “thugs” in her post. “WHY IS IT OKAY FOR WHITE PEOPLE TO PROTEST LITERALLY BEING ASKED TO STAY AT HOME WHILE CARRYING SEMI-AUTOMATIC WEAPONS? WHY IS IT OKAY FOR BLACK PEOPLE TO BE CALLED THUGS FOR PROTESTING THE MURDER OF INNOCENT PEOPLE?” she continued. “DO YOU KNOW WHY???? WHITE. F**KING PRIVILEGE.”
Billie isn’t the only one who publicly expressed disapproval about Trump’s response to the Minneapolis protests. Taylor Swift, 30, also made headlines when she responded to Trump’s “thugs” tweet with her own tweet. “After stoking the fires of white supremacy and racism your entire presidency, you have the nerve to feign moral superiority before threatening violence?” she wrote before quoting another part of his tweet. “‘When the looting starts the shooting starts’??? We will vote you out in November. @realdonaldtrump.”
Halsey was among the many who participated in the nationwide protests on Saturday (May 30) over the death of George Floyd. And like some protesters, she found herself in the line of fire while calling for justice and an end to racism.
The biracial singer-songwriter -- her mom is Irish, Italian and Hungarian, her dad African American -- shared on her Instagram stories in a series of black-and-white photos Sunday that those who were marching in Los Angeles were not making trouble.
"we were peaceful hands up no tmoving not breaching the line. they opened fire of rubber bullets and tear gas multiple times on us. citizens who were not provoking them," she wrote in the first two images, which showed police in protective gear and holding batons.
"most of us were simply begging them to have empathy. to reconsider. to consider humanity and our nations history and future," she continued. "They opened fire multiple times. I was hit twice. Once by pellets and once by shrapnel. We were gassed repeatedly for hours."
The musician ended her stories by saying that despite being fired upon by officers, the "frontline did not relent," and urged her followers to "have courage," noting that she would be back to protest.
Halsey also cleared up some confusion on Twitter, stating that she had not been detained during the demonstration. "I WAS NOT ARRESTED," she tweeted, adding that she was safe and urging followers to donate to help with bail for those who were arrested. "There were ppl I had to get to safety as many of them have VISAs. Myself + many of my peers were shot, gassed + antagonized."
The artist later explained in the early hours of Sunday morning why she feels it's important to protest. "A true patriot is someone who will rebel against the government if it becomes necessary, to protect the greater good of their fellow citizens. We are patriots," she tweeted. "If you are not, you are a coward. THIS is what democracy looks like."
Halsey is one of many musicians who took to the streets to protest the death of Floyd, who died after a Minneapolis police officer kneeled on his neck for nine minutes while he was handcuffed and face-down on the ground. Nick Cannon, Lil Yachty, Chika, J. Cole, and many others have also joined protesters around the country to make their voices heard.
Updating to new Windows 10 versions -- released twice a year -- has always been a confusing mess for Microsoft users.
This is because Microsoft employs a staggered rollout approach, making new versions available to a small part of its userbase. Tested and widely supported devices receive updates first, followed by older systems.
As the new update makes its way to more users, Microsoft can use the staggered rollout approach to catch bugs and keep issues limited only to a small part of its userbase.
However, this process has always been opaque for end users, most of which are pressing the "Check for updates" button without getting any feedback.
Starting with the Windows 10 May 2020 update (also known as Windows 10 v2004), Microsoft has taken steps to reduce the confusion around its update process by adding a clear message in the Windows Update section, letting users know if their device is scheduled to receive the update now, or at a later time.
Currently, most Windows 10 users, this message will read:
"The Windows 10 May 2020 Update is on its way. We're offering this update to compatible devices, but your device isn't quite ready for it. Once your device is ready, you'll see the update available on this page. There's nothing you need to do at this time."
Users who receive this message are advised to wait until Microsoft is ready to deploy the update. Earlier this week, Microsoft said it was tracking at least ten issues with the current May 2020 update, which began its rollout this week, on Tuesday.
Of course, if you can't wait to get your hands on the new feature-packed May 2020 update, there are also ways of side-stepping this process, like using Microsoft's Media Creation Tool.
However, this might not be a good idea, unless users are 100% sure their device is compatible with the new May 2020 update, which they can check by visiting this page that tracks all May 2020 update known issues.
Matthew Simmons/WireImage
John Legend and Kanye West aren't as tight as they used to be.
In a new interview with UK newspaper The Sunday Times, Legend opened up about how his relationship with the Jesus Is King rapper has dissolved in recent years.
In 2018, West took a public stance supporting President Donald Trump, to which Legend asked him to reconsider. In response, West tweeted out screenshots of the friends' private text messages.
In the wake of the interaction, there have been ups and downs in their public discourse, often leaving Kim Kardashian and Chrissy Teigen in the middle.
A year later, Legend told Vanity Fair: "I'm not trying to disown Kanye because I still love him and love everything we've done together creatively. But we were never the closest of friends."
However, they were close enough that Legend performed at Kimye's wedding in 2014. Legend has also attributed much of his musical success to his relationship with West, saying the then-producer was instrumental in securing his early record deals.
Currently, Legend says that while he and West aren't best buds, their political disagreements aren't exactly to blame.
"I don't think we're less friends because of the Trump thing," Legend told The Sunday Times on Saturday. "I just think we're doing our own thing. He's up in Wyoming. I'm here in LA. We've both got growing families and I no longer have a formal business relationship with him as an artist, so I think it's just part of the natural cycle of life."
Legend did reiterate that they still don't see eye-to-eye on the president, referencing a recent GQ interview in which West once again vocalized his support for Donald Trump, saying, "We know who I'm voting for!"
In 2019, Trump tweeted about Legend calling him a "boring musician" and Teigen his "filthy-mouthed wife."
"Obviously we disagreed on the Trump thing and we still do apparently," Legend continued. "But what I've always said is, we never talked about politics before. It was never a part of our interaction. Our interaction was almost always about creativity and music. He's also in a different place musically. He's doing gospel music. That's what he's focused on right now, designing his clothes, so we're in different places."
When asked if he'd consider attending one of West's Sunday Service performances, Legend said he was open to the idea.
The singer also addressed the disdain the president has for the couple, specifically his wife.
"He has a problem with strong women," Legend said. "He definitely has more ire toward Chrissy. She's a woman who would dare talk back to him and not revere him. He's threatened by that."
Legend confirmed that he gets concerned for his partner when spatting with Trump, but ultimately believes in her strength and intelligence.
"I know she's much sharper than him, and funnier," he said. " He can't hang with her. She doesn't need my protection. She will destroy him."
Much of America is still in mourning and rage over the murder of George Floyd, and if you feel personally devastated, you are far from alone. Captured on video for the world to see police brutality in action, Floyd’s death under the knee of former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin has been a visceral reminder of the threat to black lives in America, and no one who cares about black lives, including two of the most famous entertainers in the world, has been immune to the emotional fallout.
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“For the last few days, the magnitude of devastation, anger, sadness I’ve felt has been overwhelming to say the least!” Rihanna wrote in an emotional post to Instagram Saturday, tagged with not only Floyd’s name but the names of recent victims Ahmaud Arbery and Breonna Taylor. “Watching my people get murdered and lynched day after day pushed me to a heavy place in my heart! To the point of staying away from socials, just to avoid hearing the blood curdling agony in George Floyd’s voice again, begging over and over for his life!!!”
“The look of enticement, the pure joy and climax on the face of this bigot, murderer, thug, pig, bum, Derek Chauvin, haunts me!! I can’t shake this!” she added. “I can’t get over an ambulance pulling up to an arrest, a paramedic checking a pulse without removing the very thing that’s hindering it! Is this that fucking normal??? If intentional MURDER is the fit consequence for “drugs” or “resisting arrest”....then what’s the fit consequence for MURDER???!”
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Beyoncé is also questioning the charges leveled against Chauvin, taken into custody on Friday and charged with third-degree murder and second-degree manslaughter. In a rare video appearance on her Instagram page Saturday, the singer and philanthropist spoke out about the tragedy, urging her followers to sign a petition posted on her site to “demand more charges brought on all those involved in the death of George Floyd.”
“We need justice for George Floyd. We all witnessed his murder in broad daylight. We’re broken and we’re disgusted. We cannot normalize this pain,” Beyoncé said in the video (h/t Rolling Stone). “I’m not only speaking to people of color; if you’re white, black, brown or anything in-between, I’m sure you feel hopeless by the racism going on in America right now. No more senseless killing of human beings, no more seeing people of color as less than human. We can no longer look away. George is all of our family in humanity. He’s our family because he’s a fellow American.”
“There have been too many times that we’ve seen these violent killings and no consequences. Yes, someone’s been charged, but justice is far from being achieved,” she continued. “Please sign the petition and continue to pray for peace, compassion and healing for our country.”
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In addition to texting “FLOYD” to 55156, Beyoncé is directing her followers to four justice organizations confronting this current crisis: Color of Change, the NAACP, We Can’t Breathe and Change.org, which has notified The Root that Floyd’s has become the largest petition in its history. In addition to Beyoncé, signatures include Cardi B, Keke Palmer, Lil Nas X, Attorney Benjamin Crump, Jay Versace, and nearly 8 million more. Additionally, June 2 has been designated “Black Out Tuesday” by many in the music industry; billed as “a day to disconnect from work and reconnect with our community”; coincidentally, at the start of what is as billed as Black Music Month.
OnePlus will no longer release McLaren editions of its phones in the future. The phonemaker and the British auto manufacturer have ended their partnership, a McLaren spokesperson has confirmed to Android Authority after reports about their split came out. Word started going around that the two were parting ways, because OnePlus is no longer listed as a Formula 1 partner on McLaren’s website.
In a statement sent to the publication, the spokesperson said:
“Our partnership with OnePlus, which came to its scheduled conclusion recently, has been a highly successful collaboration between two iconic and innovative brands. Since the start of this partnership in 2018, OnePlus has been a supportive, valued partner and we wish them well and hope to see them in the future.”
The rep didn’t explain why the two companies are no longer working together, but it sounds like they decided not to renew their deal after their collaboration ended. OnePlus’ McLaren phones are usually souped up versions of their basic counterparts. The OnePlus 6T McLaren packs 10GB of RAM instead of just 6GB or 8GB, for instance, while the OnePlus 7T Pro McLaren has 12GB of RAM and 5G connectivity, which the standard 7T Pro doesn’t have.
At CES earlier this year, OnePlus also showed off a phone called Concept One that’s clad in papaya-hued leather that McLaren uses for some of its cars. Since it’s still a concept device and the companies’ collab has ended, we might never see the device make its way to shelves.
Lil Wayne's comments about the killing of George Floyd have rubbed some people the wrong way. Add actor Lakeith Stanfield to the number of people who apparently want the Young Money rapper to keep quiet.
On Friday (May 29), in response to Tunechi's statement, Stanfield put up a since-deleted Instagram post where he called out Wayne. Along with a black and white photo that appears to show a protest from decade's ago, he captioned the pic, "Wayne STFU."
Lil Wayne has come under fire for statements he made about Floyd's killing during an Instagram Live conversation with Fat Joe.
"I think when we see these situations, I think we also have to understand that we have to get very specific," Wayne opined. "...And what I mean by that is we have to stop viewing it with such a broad view, meaning we have to stop placing the blame on the whole force and the whole everybody or a certain race or everybody with a badge."
He went on to infer that citizens are somehow to blame for the violence they face at the hands of police. "We have to actually get into who that person is," Wayne continued. "And if we want to place the blame on anybody, it should be ourselves for not doing more than what we think we're doing."
George Floyd died on May 25 in Minneapolis, Minn. after he was arrested for allegedly passing a fraudulent $20 bill at a gas station. Video of the arrest shows officer Derek Chauvin kneeing the unarmed, detained man on his neck for close to 10 minutes while Floyd pleaded for his life. After going unconscious, Floyd was later pronounced dead. The killing has sparked outrage, with protests breaking out all over the country. On Friday, Chauvin was arrested and charged with third-degree murder and manslaughter.
See Lil Wayne Albums Worth Listening to and Those You Need to Skip
This family dynasty just added one more to the family tree!
Earlier this week, Duck Dynasty star Phil Robertson recently found out that he fathered a child from a past affair, who is named Phyliss.
As fans of the famous family know, the patriarch and his longtime wife Kay Robertson are parents to four kids (who are all adults): Jep Robertson (42), Willie Robertson (48), Jase Robertson (50) and Alan Robertson (55).
Now, Phil has welcomed his adult daughter to his... well, dynasty! And the reality TV personality couldn't be happier over the news.
"It's a pretty cool explanation of redemption, reconciliation, love," Phil shared in a video uploaded on his YouTube channel. "As it turns out, 45 years, you have a daughter that you don't know about, and she has a father she doesn't know about."
He added, "45 years—that doesn't sound like very long, but you say, that's a while. So finally, after all those years, we come together."
After learning about the family news, Phil's granddaughter shared her excitement over her new family member.
"The bigger the better," Sadie Robertson captioned her Instagram Story earlier this week, which has now been expired but captured by People.
In her post, the 22-year-old star showed an image of her mother, Korie Robertson, and aunts posing with Phyliss on the beach. The group was all smiles as they gathered around each other.
Korie originally shared the snapshot to her Instagram feed with a heartwarming caption.
"We have a new sister! We found out not long ago that Phil has a daughter, and Willie and his brothers have a sister," she wrote. "It was as much a surprise to all of us as it probably is to you, but life is full of surprises, and this one is especially sweet!"
Adding, "Our annual family beach pics were even crazier, and the Robertson men are now officially outnumbered so we're feeling pretty good right about now, ha! Welcome to the fam, Phyllis; I promise it's never boring."
Additionally, Willie took to his Instagram page to share the news of his new sibling.
"So good finding my long lost sister. Can't wait to share life with y'all's family. Welcome to the nuttiest family around," he expressed.
Jessica Robertson also has sweet words to share over her new sister-in-law.
"Jep's dream came true... he finally got a big sister and we are so excited that Phyllis is in our lives now," she wrote. "The Robertson family is now bigger and better than ever."
For this family, it's the more the merrier!
For the past several months, we’ve assumed that the next iOS release would be light on features and heavy on performance improvements and ...
