The Weekend Entertainment Recap: December 26th
At the end of an eight-day trial, a verdict was reached in the 2020 shooting of hip-hop star Megan Thee Stallion. A Los Angeles jury found Canadian rapper Tory Lanez guilty of three felonies in the 2020 shooting of hip-hop star Megan Thee Stallion. The jury consisted of seven women and five men. Tory Lanez, whose legal name is Daystar Peterson, was found guilty on December 23 of assault with a semiautomatic firearm, having a loaded, unregistered firearm in a vehicle and discharging a firearm with gross negligence. The 30-year-old rapper is facing more than 22 years in prison and is expected back in court on January 27, 2023.
While Tory Lanez will be taken into custody, 20 women in Philadelphia who were unable to afford bail were released this weekend thanks to rapper Meek Mill. The Philly native paid the bail for the women so that they can be with their loved ones for the holidays, according to REFORM Alliance. The women were incarcerated at Riverside Correctional Facility and Meek Mill decided to provide the needed funds because “no one should have to spend the holidays in jail.” He launched the REFORM Alliance in 2019 with a variety of industry leaders, including Jay-Z.
Singer Tamar Braxton is also embracing a recent release, but in her case, it is a release from the hospital. The 45-year-old singer announced that she was taken to the hospital after contracting the flu and not being able to breathe. Although she had the health scare, Braxton has been released from the hospital with plans to isolate herself and she is encouraging others to stay safe.
Most people are in the giving mood due to the holiday season, but boxing legend Floyd Mayweather is starting to rethink how we celebrate “commercialized holidays.” The boxer took to social media and made a post announcing that he “will not be accepting gifts on Christmas” in addition to his birthday, Valentine’s Day, or Father’s Day. Mayweather prefers to receive his gifts year-round instead of four times a year. He added, “the random gift on any given day is priceless.”
However, the boxer didn’t specify if he feels the same way about giving gifts on holidays.
As the year comes to a close former President Barack Obama released a list of his favorite songs as well as books and movies of 2022. When it comes to music, the former president released a 25-song list featuring artists such as Lizzo, SZA, Ari Lennox and Burna Boy. The President included Till, The Woman King, Top Gun: Maverick and The Good Boss on his list of 17 best movies of 2022. In addition to the songs and movies, Obama highlighted books such as “The Light We Carry” by Michelle Obama and “Liberation Day” by George Saunders on his list of 13.