★★★
FBI Arrests Rappers in Houston Shooting Connection
Anderson .Paak Settles With Jae Lin After 14 Years
Anderson Paak has reached a divorce settlement with his estranged wife, Jae Lin, more than two years after filing to end their marriage. The Grammy-winning singer filed court documents on September 2 notifying the court that he and Lin had worked out an agreement covering the division of their property and support.
Anderson Paak filed for divorce in January 2024 after nearly 14 years of marriage. The musician and Lin tied the knot in 2010, though he did not list a separation date in his original filing. It’s never easy when a long-term relationship reaches this point, but both parties seem ready to move forward with dignity.
The former couple shares two children, and custody had emerged as one of the key issues in the case. Paak initially requested joint custody of their children, while Lin sought primary custody. These conversations around co-parenting and family care are deeply personal, and it’s clear both parents wanted what’s best for their kids.
The settlement comes as Paak has continued moving forward with his life outside the marriage. Since the divorce filing, the Silk Sonic musician has made headlines over his personal life after being spotted spending time with Mariah Carey. In May, the pair fueled more chatter when they were photographed holding hands.
Paak has also been seen with television personality Jeannie Mai, following her headline-making divorce from rapper Jeezy. Neither Paak nor Lin has publicly shared additional details about the terms of their settlement, which keeps the focus on their healing and growth.
★m★
Kodak Black Charged With Fleeing Police
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Stevie Wonder’s Songs in the Key of Life Album
Tickets for Stevie Wonder‘s 50th-anniversary “Songs in the Key of Life” tour are officially on sale. If there’s ever been an album worth celebrating across five decades, it’s this one.
Released in 1976, Wonder’s double album delivered instant classics like “Sir Duke,” “I Wish,” and “Isn’t She Lovely”—songs that still define what soul music can be. Before diving into the tour, here are 13 things about the making of this masterpiece that might surprise you.
The Album Almost Didn’t Happen
Stevie Wonder almost walked away from music entirely. In 1974, he was seriously considering leaving the industry to focus on philanthropic work in Ghana. He even planned and announced a farewell concert. What changed? A new deal with Motown that gave him unprecedented creative control, and the world got this album instead.
It Made Billboard History
When “Songs in the Key of Life” dropped, it became the third album ever to debut at number one on the Billboard 200—and the first by an American artist to do so. The same achievement repeated on the Billboard Pop Album Charts that year.
Surprising Artists Were Behind the Scenes
The guest list reads like a who’s who of soul and jazz. Herbie Hancock played Fender Rhodes, George Benson contributed guitar work, and both Deniece Williams and Minnie Riperton lent their voices to background vocals. These weren’t token contributions—each artist brought their A-game to Wonder’s vision.
The Album Title Came to Him in A Dream
Wonder spent considerable time searching for the right album title. Then it came to him in a dream. Once he settled on “Songs in the Key of Life,” he explained that the title itself became both challenge and compass.
In the “Classic Albums” documentary, he reflected: “I challenged myself to write as many different things as I could, to cover as many topics as I could. The title gave me an opportunity to express my feelings as a songwriter and as an artist.”
Hundreds of Songs Were Recorded
Co-engineer John Fischbach revealed to Rolling Stone just how prolific this project was. Over two years of near-daily sessions, Wonder recorded roughly 200 songs—some sketched out, others nearly finished. It remains one of the most productive periods of his entire career.
Family and Loved Ones Contributed
Family members played key roles. His brother Calvin Hardaway co-wrote “Have a Talk With God.” His sister Renee delivers the now-iconic “You nasty boy!” on “I Wish.” His ex-wife Syreeta Wright sang background vocals on “Ordinary Pain.” The album feels like a genuine collaboration across Wonder’s personal circle.
“I Wish” Was Born at a Motown Picnic
Wonder wrote “I Wish” the day of a Motown company picnic in summer 1976. He was battling a toothache, but the energy of the day—running contests, the vibe of his Motown family—gave him the song’s infectious groove. He headed straight to Crystal Recording Studio afterward and captured it while the feeling was fresh.
“Isn’t She Lovely?” Features Real Baby Recordings
When Wonder’s daughter Aisha Morris was born in February 1975, the joy poured directly into this track. The baby sounds at the beginning and end aren’t just studio effects. His daughter actually appears on the recording, making noises while Wonder bathes her. It’s intimate and genuine in a way most pop songs never achieve.
Stevie’s Motown Deal Made History
The seven-year, seven-album deal that guaranteed this album’s existence was unprecedented at the time. A $13 million advance, 20 percent royalties, and publishing control—in the mid-1970s, that was staggering. Motown founder Berry Gordy later admitted he was “shaking in his boots” over the deal, but he knew losing Wonder wasn’t an option.
The Grammy Gift That Kept on Giving
“Songs in the Key of Life” won Album of the Year at the Grammys, plus Producer of the Year for Wonder. It was his third Album of the Year Grammy in four years—a feat that still hasn’t been matched. The album later entered both the Grammy Hall of Fame and the National Recording Registry.
“Pastime Paradise” Inspired Coolio’s “Gangsta’s Paradise”
In 1995, Coolio sampled “Pastime Paradise” for his massive hit “Gangsta’s Paradise.” The song introduced Wonder’s work to an entirely new generation and gave Wonder composition credits on one of the biggest rap songs of the decade. That’s the mark of true artistry—your work remains relevant across genres and decades.
“Sir Duke” Honored More Than Just Duke Ellington
Though Wonder never collaborated with Duke Ellington, he wanted to honor the jazz legend and other Black artists who shaped his musical foundation. The song celebrates Count Basie, Glenn Miller, Louis Armstrong, and Ella Fitzgerald—a love letter to the musicians who made his own artistry possible.
“Songs In the Key of Life” Remains His Proudest Achievement
Over a 60-year career, Wonder has released numerous masterpieces. But in a 1995 interview with Q Magazine, he named “Songs in the Key of Life” as the one he’s most proud of. “Of all the albums, ‘Songs in the Key of Life,’ I’m most happy about. Just the time, being alive then. To be a father and then… letting go and letting God give me the energy and strength I needed,” he said. That gratitude still resonates today, 50 years later.
★TR★
Cassie and Alex Fine Return After Leaving USA
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Ed Sheeran Tour Pressure Over Macklemore Palestine Speech
Free Palestine just became the centerpiece of a major tour controversy. Macklemore brought his message to Ed Sheeran’s MetLife Stadium show in New Jersey on Friday, and now there’s real tension brewing between supporters and those calling for his removal from the rest of the tour.
Opening for Sheeran, the Grammy winner performed his protest track “Hind’s Hall” and spoke directly to the 80,000-person crowd. He wore a keffiyeh and shared footage of Gaza on the screens behind him. “I wanted to do this tour in the first place so I could stand up in stadiums like this and say two words that are very near and dear to my heart: Free Palestine,” Macklemore said. He went on to speak about how people everywhere deserve to “know safety and peace before they know the sound of violence,” and he addressed families living with war and fear.
The rapper made it clear he wasn’t backing down from uncomfortable conversations. “If I let that fear I felt on the plane yesterday stop me from speaking my heart,” he told the audience, “that is the day I no longer continue to be on stage.”
His comments didn’t sit well with everyone. The Israeli-American Council quickly launched a petition calling for his removal from Sheeran’s remaining tour dates, claiming the concert shouldn’t have been turned into a political platform. “This was an Ed Sheeran concert, not a political rally, not a protest, and not an activist event,” the petition stated.
The group also demanded that tour organizers clarify whether Macklemore’s remarks, visuals, and “Hind’s Hall” performance had been approved beforehand. The backlash shows how freedom struggle messaging continues to spark real divisions, even when artists are speaking from a place of genuine conviction and care for communities affected by conflict.
This moment reflects the ongoing tension between artistic expression and audience expectations at major commercial events. Whether you agree with his approach or not, Macklemore’s willingness to use his platform—even knowing the consequences—speaks to how radical women of color and socially conscious artists continue to push boundaries in spaces traditionally reserved for entertainment alone.
★m★
Diddy Wins Legal Battle Over Defamation Claims
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Black Maternal Health: Monique Rodriguez’s $2M Mission
In 2013, Monique Rodriguez was eight months pregnant when she knew something was wrong. The labor and delivery nurse understood the warning signs well. When she suffered a uterine rupture, she repeatedly tried to tell the doctors caring for her that something didn’t feel right. She was advocating for herself in exactly the way Black women are told they must. Still, Rodriguez says, she wasn’t heard in time. Her son, Milan, died.
Her experience fundamentally changed how she thinks about the advice routinely given to Black women navigating healthcare. “We have to recognize that women can advocate for themselves and still not be heard,” she said. “The responsibility doesn’t just lie on the patient.” More than a decade later, Monique Rodriguez, who founded the successful hair care company Mielle Organics, is turning one of the most painful experiences of her life into a $2 million commitment to BirthFUND, the maternal-health organization founded by journalist and author Monique Rodriguez that supports midwifery.
It wasn’t an immediate pivot to advocacy for Rodriguez but one that took years of grappling with grief. She had watched Welteroth’s work from afar and repeatedly received invitations to BirthFUND events. She declined them. Hearing joyful birth stories meant confronting the fact that her own ended differently.
Then, during a trip to Martha’s Vineyard, the two women unexpectedly ran into each other. Rodriguez shared Milan’s story with Welteroth. Welteroth said she was “gutted.”
“Monique is more than a funder,” Welteroth told The Root. “She understands this issue as a survivor of a broken system that robbed her of her child’s life. There are no words for that level of heartbreak, for that trauma, that unthinkable loss.”
For Rodriguez, joining the work has become part advocacy, part legacy, and in some ways part of her own continued healing. “I think that I probably need to do more healing,” she said. “A lot of this is still helping me heal because you never get over it, right?”
That grief is also why Rodriguez wants the conversation about Black maternal health to extend beyond whether a mother survives childbirth. There are women living with traumatic pregnancies, stillbirth, infant loss, and difficult births long after they leave the hospital. After Milan died, Rodriguez remembers the immediate concern from people around her eventually fading. She had the support of her husband, family, and faith, but said she doesn’t remember the hospital offering trauma therapy or other long-term support.
“I think that we just need to talk about it more and not act like it doesn’t exist,” she said.
BirthFUND is trying to tackle another piece of that conversation by expanding access to midwifery care and increasing the number of people trained to provide it. As part of its partnership with Rodriguez, BirthFUND is supporting a new midwifery scholarship program at Kennedy-King College on Chicago’s South Side. The college has been working with the Black Midwifery Collective to establish the program. The inaugural cohort is expected to include 20 students, with the scholarship named after Milan.
The program is expected to begin in January, with the goal of funding the full first cohort and, through Rodriguez’s multi-year commitment, future cohorts as well.
For Welteroth, expanding midwifery isn’t about pitting midwives against doctors. She hopes to give women, especially women of color, more options and more agency over their pregnancies. “This is not just about saving lives,” Welteroth said. “This is about treating women and their bodies with respect, dignity, and giving them the autonomy to make the right choice of care for themselves.”
“My goal with BirthFUND is to reach future moms before they’ve experienced the trauma that I’m talking about, that Monique has lived,” Welteroth said. “We try to catch the younger ladies, the next generation of moms, before they get put into that system.”
★TR★
D4vd Death Penalty: Celeste Rivas Hernandez Case
Mass incarceration cases like this one hit differently when they involve young victims. Celeste Rivas Hernandez’s parents are asking prosecutors to pursue the harshest possible punishment against D4vd if he is convicted in their daughter’s killing. Their plea comes just before a painful milestone for the family—Celeste would have turned 16 this month.
The singer, whose legal name is David Burke, has been charged in connection with Celeste’s death after her remains were discovered inside a Tesla registered to him at a Hollywood tow yard in September 2025. The family told the California Post they believe the death penalty would be “perfect” for Burke, describing the devastation they say he caused. “That’s not in our hands, but rather in God’s, and the California justice system,” the family continued. You can read more about mass incarceration cases and their impact on families navigating the legal system.
Los Angeles County District Attorney Nathan Hochman is still deciding whether his office will seek capital punishment or life imprisonment if Burke is found guilty. Hochman has said death penalty decisions will be reserved for “exceedingly rare cases” and made only after a comprehensive review, with surviving family members allowed to weigh in on the outcome.
Celeste’s parents have already endured difficult moments in court while closely following the case. Burke is accused of first-degree murder and sexual assault. Tuesday will mark one year since Celeste’s remains were discovered.
★m★
South Park Creators’ Kendrick Lamar Movie Put on Hold
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