Monday, November 30, 2015

Phone Down (Lashuntrice Version)

Phone Down (Lashuntrice Version)

I can make you pick your phone up
If you’re really interested in me
You’ll make the first call
I can use words to stimulate your mind
We can talk about the Bible and families
Or like a Zane book or an R. Kelly song
I can send you salacious messages
Get you so mentally stimulated
You’ll be waiting for me at the door
I can make you follow all the directions
GPS be your best friend for 15 or 20 minutes
So anxious for Lashuntrice you can’t risk getting lost
I can make you want more
Because I talk a lot of shit

You’re curious to see if I can back it up

Wednesday, November 25, 2015

Erykah Badu on The Breakfast Club


I'm not sure when it happened, but I've developed this need to stan for uniqueness. Maybe it's because I've found myself in too many situations where people didn't want me to be myself. With that said, Erykah Badu was on the Breakfast Club for the first time expressing her amazing unique personality. 

Chris Brown Interview With Angie Martinez 11/24/15

Chris Brown is showing his maturity in his latest interview. 

Tuesday, November 24, 2015

Chocolate City 2, Yes There's A Sequel


Remember the Chocolate City movie where Robert Ri'Chard's character became a stripper so he could make some real money? 

It was basically a movie that allowed him and Michael Jai White to show off their magnificent physical appearances. It also allowed Genuine to do a strip tease to his classic song Pony. There were also quite a few Magic Mike references since it was supposed to be the Black version. Other than that it had no real plot and barely lasted in the theaters long. Despite the lack of a storyline, someone decided that we needed to see more of these beautiful men, so we're getting a second movie. 

Chocolate City 2 will be coming soon, according to the Instagram page. Maybe there will be a real storyline this time. Then again, will a storyline matter? 

Monday, November 23, 2015

Face Off, About This Man Who Received Face Transplant Surgery

Back in 1997 John Travolta and Nicholas Cage showed us what taking one man's face and putting it on another man's body could look like. It was the coolest thing my childhood eyes saw that year, but at the same time I knew it was completely fiction. I knew the skin on a man's face could not successfully come off and be place on another person and both would manage to survive. However, I was wrong. Apparently it is possibly and there is a name for it. Face Transplant Surgery. 

This year, 2015, the very first successful face transplant surgery was done on a 41 year old man named Patrick Hardison. Hardison was a firefighter whose face was severely burned in 2001. According to Huffington Post, Hardison underwent a 26 hour procedure as doctors put a brand new face on him. 

This sounds like a good fiction movie, but it is not. This is also not your typical cosmetic surgery. They did not need to reshape his ears or his nose. They were not making his mouth bigger or smaller. He was getting new cheeks or laser eye surgery. For the procedure the face of a man who was pronounced brain dead after a terrible bike accident was used to give Hardison a brand new physical appearance.  

Technology never ceases to amaze us and confuse us at the very same time. 

Just Because He's Black, Should We Support Him?

A Kentucky judge by the name of Olu Stevens will soon have to face the Supreme Court because he's been advocating for a fair trail for Black people that step into his court room.

On more than one occasion he has dismissed a jury because the defendant in the case was Black and the jury was all White. His reasoning was that a jury of all White people would already have a preconceived notion of whether the Black person was guilty or not. Other judges have disagreed with Judge Stevens methods and think he shouldn't be allowed to handle any more criminal cases.

It gets worse than what some judges thinks. There are online petitions to get the judge disbarred. There are also Facebook groups created to show hatred toward him and his family has received death threats.

However, not everyone is being negative toward the judge. Some people think Judge Stevens is doing his job appropriately and that we should rally behind him.

Your Black World is saying that the Black Lives Matters protestors and TV One should show support for  the judge. Do you agree?

Before you answer:
Louisville, Kentucky has a 20% population of Black people.
According to google there are 597,337 people in Louisville city limits as of 2015.
136,705 of them are Black.
That means that if a jury of a person's peers are supposed to be selected at random across the city, then there's no guarantee that even half of people that get called for jury duty on that specific day will be Black.
How often have you been called for jury duty and was looking for any excuse to not have to sit through the trial?

I want to be on the judge's side with this. Everyone deserves the right to a fair trial. However, there is no guarantee how jury will think whether they have the skin tone of the defendant or not.

What do you think? Should we support Judge Olu Stevens?

Sunday, November 22, 2015

Sexy Song~ KeKe Wyatt

Can we all admit that KeKe Wyatt's Ke'Ke' EP didn't get enough love? It was probably because she became pregnant soon after releasing it. However, KeKe is releasing new music for us to fall in love with.  Her newest song is called Sexy Song and it is very romantic. 

Listen to her do an impromptu of Sexy Song below. 

Thursday, November 19, 2015

Using The Cheating Pass Is The Problem, Not Having It

Several celebrities are bragging about having the option to sleep with someone other than their significant other when they feel the need to and the significant others are giving them permission to cheat.

The current conversation started with Toya Wright and her husband Memphitz. On a new television show that helps couples through their divorce process, it was announced that Toya had been giving Memphitz eight hall passes a year to sleep with however many women he wanted. I didn't watch the show, but from the conversations around the web she wasn't giving herself the same luxury. The idea of having a cheating pass shouldn't have erupted from this couple because clearly it wasn't working for them. They're getting divorced.

However, it did and a new woman decided to add her input. That woman is the comedian Mo'Nique. Mo'Nique stepped in to announce that she and her husband give each other cheating passes. This is her 3rd marriage. I guess it is working for them because he manages her career and they don't seem to be having any relationship trouble. There is one huge reason why the cheating pass works for Mo'Nique and her husband. They have the rule, but they don't actually use it.

Having a cheating pass is like hall passes in grade school. Starting 8th grade year I really hated school and one of the main reasons was hall passes. Although hall passes were there, the teachers didn't actually want the students to use them.

The summer before that school year I started my period for the first time. I was still getting used the fact of bleeding a whole 7 days out of every month and then I had to deal with the stupidity of getting permission to use the restroom while in school. That year I started at one school which was a little relaxed and transferred to another with some crazy rules. The new school was much stricter when it came to the correct clothing and getting to class on time. How was I going to manage when it came to those days where I was on my period? I couldn't go to the bathroom in between class periods and make it to class on time. That time in between classes was only five minutes and a girl who wants to be clean has to take care of herself. So there came a day where that five minutes really didn't cut it. I needed that damn hall pass to go to the restroom. It was a heavy flow day and I knew it would be bad if I had to wait until class was over. For some reason that stupid ass teacher wouldn't let me out of the classroom and by the time I did go to the restroom it was bad.

Wait, hall passes are actually important in school, but the point is teachers don't actually want the students to use them. Cheating passes are similar. Cheating passes give the allure of freedom. The pass is supposed to give the idea that either significant other can explore others without feeling guilty. However, in reality the pass should not be used. At least, my significant other shouldn't use it.

I'm a woman that highly values my body and there are too many risks with multiple sex partners. There's way too many risks with having multiple sex partners and my partner having multiple sex partners too. STD's could happen and accidental pregnancies. Some men tend to get comfortable not using condoms with any woman if their main woman allows them to not use one. Oh, and the major reason utilizing that cheating pass wouldn't work is because I'm jealous and I would want to know every single detail about the other woman that he cheated on me with. I'd need to know about her health wise and what she is mentality offering him that I'm not.

Tuesday, November 17, 2015

Social Media Arguing, "Folks Just Want To Pop Off"

In the words of President Barack Obama, "Folks just want to pop off." For real, people just want to get mad and argue. If the lack of your phone ringing doesn't tell you how people feel about you, controversy on social media will let you know. 

A couple of days ago, Friday the 13th, there were attacks in several different countries caused by different terrorist groups. ISIS hit up Paris and because it's the city of love, Paris received the most press. There were other reasons why Paris received the most attention, but we'll just stick to the love concept. Enough people felt emotionally moved by the attacks that Mark Zuckerberg added a flag application on Facebook for people to show support. The Paris flag went up on a lot of Facebook profiles, but then there were also people that was pissed. 

There were people who complained that people who supported the flag were showing support to a place that brought in slaves and still has 13 African countries paying taxes to it. There were complaints that there wasn't as much attention shown to the Kenya terrorist attacks that happened back in April. There were complaints that flags from all the other places that had terrorist attacks should be added as an option too. There so many complaints that people went into full fledged arguments under statuses. 

If one person tried to explain their rationale for supporting Paris, another person would try to change their opinion by practically calling them dumb. The other person would have a comeback about how the government doesn't care about Black lives and Black lives are what we should be supporting. If both parties continued to disagree they would go so far as to attack each other's self worth. It was crazy, but this is nothing new to see on social media. 

People aren't just arguing over terrorist attacks. They are arguing over celebrities, education, racism, protesting, freedom of speech, parenting choices, opinions on friendships, and physical appearances. People online argue in groups just to start up arguments. They argue with their family, friends, acquaintances, coworkers, and strangers. It's a lot to read and it gets annoying. It gets kind of boring too. 

I used to wander why my phone didn't ring a lot. I used to want more friends to hang out with, laugh together, and have embarrassing moments with. However, social media has taught me that I may be good just the way I am because "Folks just want to pop off." People want to hide behind computer screens and attack each other. 

Thursday, November 12, 2015

Social Media Activism Is Changing My Ways of Thinking

Yesterday I gave a woman some food. I'm not saying this for the comments or the likes. This is not a Facebook post.

But actually it wasn't fulfilling food. After work I stopped by this restaurant to pick up something to eat and a woman was waiting outside. I'm guessing she had been begging everyone for food, but no one had given her anything. I was next for her to ask. I wasn't about to give her my delicious newly purchased meal, but I felt bad for her. I kept my food and informed her that I had a cup of Frosted Flakes in the car. They were in the bowl that you can find in CVS or The Family Dollar store. I handed them to her and before she could get a "Thank you" out of her mouth, she had already opened it and started eating. She wasn't lying when she said she was hungry. Before this I had only ever given coins to people like her before, but my mindset is changing.

It may be because of social media activism or maybe I'm just getting a little nicer. I don't know if that's good or bad.

See there are these certain sections of Facebook and Twitter that are created for people to be (for lack of better words) assholes. They come into these Facebook groups and attack each other's looks (mostly) just for the Hell of it. Its similar to what 50 Cent and Vivica Fox are doing, but these people don't know each other outside of Facebook. Some of them don't know each other outside of the groups. I think it's their way of letting out repressed anger from situations they don't have control of.

They do it a little different on Twitter. You may see a tweet you either disagree with or you just question. They won't attack you right away, because they think someone will defend you. They wait until they think you've forgotten (several days or a week) and then they start attacking your mentions when barely anyone is logged on. It confuses you, because you have no idea what their problem is or why you've been singled out. It doesn't hurt me to see this exactly. In 29 years I've gotten used to the fact that some people don't like you just to not like you and some people are mean just to be mean. However, it does make me question why I'm not meaner to others.

I will admit social media activism softens me up. It balances me out. I see them on Facebook and Twitter all the time. There are pages created to feed the homeless (which is typical), to get people to read more, to uplift others. I've been added to groups dedicated to figuring out problems and giving solutions in the African American community. There are groups of Twitter handles with writers like me that are trying to get their voices heard. There's nothing negative about their approach to writing and the world of blogging. They are trying to succeed and giving the rest of us advice as they get it. Of course there is also the more media friendly activism that involves police brutality and racism.

There is a difference between the online hate and the online activism. The activism extends past social media. It motivates real people to do real positive things. The positivity is what is influencing me most. I want to get out and help others however I can.

Wednesday, November 11, 2015

Erykah Badu Can Make You Put Your Phone Down


In her new song dedicated to Drake, Erykah Badu is saying she can make you put your phone down. Listen below.

BTW: I can also make you put your phone down.

Tuesday, November 10, 2015

Tawana Lael~ I've Got You

Vivica Fox, The Woman That Keeps Getting Her Feelings Hurt

By now everyone has seen the Watch What Happens Live video clip of Vivica Fox insinuating that 50 Cent is gay and Soulja Boy could possibly be his lover.

She tried to justify her theory by pointing out a XXL cover they were on together. That particular magazine cover was released in 2010. The allegations started after Andy Cohen asked her about her thoughts on 50 Cent saying there was too much gay stuff on the Empire show. Everyone was shocked by it, especially since earlier this year Vivica was calling 50 Cent the love of her life. By the way, they dated 12 years ago for a couple of months, so those must have been a terrific couple of months for her. 

If only the messiness could have been left on Bravo TV, but it wasn't. Before the show was over, 50 knew what had been said about him. Soulja Boy also heard that his name was brought up into the drama. Soulja Boy immediately responded but 50 waited a couple of hours. 

Once he did get started with the insults, it seemed like he would never stop. 50 didn't just insult Vivica though. He used editing apps to make her look bad and reposted memes others had made. Since 50's sexuality was put into question by one of his exes, he couldn't go easy on her. 

The lesson in this messiness is not that 50 Cent can fight back though. We all know he does not like being insulted or questioned in any form. This is all about Vivica and setting herself up for pain. 
Why did they break up 12 years ago? Clearly the relationship didn't work out. Earlier this year when she started talking about him being the love of her life, his response wasn't exactly friendly. That should have been the time that his name never came out of her mouth again. However, it did and it is clear that Vivica set herself up to be hurt again. 

This isn't just some random person throwing up memes on the internet. This is an ex-boyfriend that her feelings were so deep for that she's still talking about him over a decade later. 

If a dude I used to be with put up those kind of memes and videos, I'd be somewhere crying right now. I'd want to lock myself in the house for a week straight, except to go to work. I need to get those dollars in order to have a place to lock myself up in and cry in for a week straight. I would be absolutely devastated that a man I had feelings for came for my self worth with the cruelest of words.

Why do we women set ourselves up for this kind of pain? Next time you think about that ex-boyfriend that it absolutely did not work out with,  think of Vivica Fox. 

 BTW: look for my book, Woman Manifested, to come out soon. 

Friday, November 6, 2015

(Video) Gangsta Boo~ Meet The Devil


"This shit here, this shit ain't for radio homie."


I Forgot To Find My Husband At An HBCU Too

Forgive me for not updating regularly. I have a lot on my mind. A little bit of it involves getting a collection of poetry published in book format. They are poems about struggles with love and success. Some of the other thoughts involve being 29 years old and trying to figure out where the Hell my life is going.

For real! I'm 29, single, have been living on my own for a couple years, and feel fully acquainted to the struggle of having responsibilities. I've also become acquainted with that feeling of really enjoying my life, even if only for seconds in between long stretches of weeks and months, and the knowledge of what putting too many purchases on a credit card looks like.

However, there are some things that are missing. One is lots of money. Where is all the money I need to fulfill my heart's content? I have a half a year to start planning out the perfect 30th birthday celebration (that's how long I'll wait before I take it seriously) and so far I'm lacking the funds to really do it where I want it to happen. A woman named Lashuntrice can't do celebrations small forever.

What gets a person like me the type of money I need to really fulfill my desires? Where is that good career path? Does it go down a road that I really don't want to travel? Statistics show that most of us humans are working jobs that don't fulfill our passions. In the last couple of years I've tried to convince myself that passionate work probably isn't that important, but the truth is fulfilling my passions is the most important thing. I'm not a robot.

When it comes to dating I have felt sort of robot though. If one more man tells me that he's not an outgoing person, would rather just chill in the house, and expects me to go along with it, I'm going to scream. Yet at the same time I'm confused about this whole process of meeting a man, getting to know him well enough that we get married, have kids, and live happily ever after. How does it work?

For Buzzfeed, a popular writer by the name of Jamilah Lemieux wrote an article titled I Forgot To Find My Husband At A Black University. Upon reading it I found myself relating to several points.

While I didn't gain weight like Jamilah, I didn't see myself as the type of woman that men on Florida A&M's campus was attracted to. I didn't fit the image many of them repeatedly said they wanted. I wasn't the light skinned girl, the foreigner, or the one in a sorority, and I wasn't the most liked either. I had enemies that disliked me just to dislike me. I was the one that men expressed interest in but then struggled to take out of the "we're talking" stage. I was also very protective of my emotions because very few others had my back, so I really didn't like just throwing my interest for a particular guy on the table and waiting for the results.

Actually even with moments of lacking confidence and moments of just playing games with certain guys, I really did want to meet my husband at FAMU. I wanted to meet a man that I could grow with. We would both grow in our careers and be able to share new experiences for years to come. We were supposed to have our baby by now and our comfortable house wherever the wind was supposed to take us.

My love life isn't what I imagined it would be at this point. My confidence level has changed a lot since those days of running around FAMU's campus and sometimes FSU's campus too. I do believe I'm the type that a man should be choosing to spend forever with. I just haven't met the man that I'm supposed to spend forever with yet. He could still be an HBCU graduate, but I'll accept him if he's not.

If you're reading this and you are single, where did you imagine meeting the husband you don't have yet? You can comment or find me on social media. MrsStarStatus (Twitter & Instagram), Lashuntrice Bradley on Facebook.

Tuesday, November 3, 2015

Let Me Love You Down (Poem)

Let me know what you think of my poem. The photo was randomly chosen from Instagram. 

Let Me Love You Down (my poem) 

It never really mattered that much to me
That you were way too dumb for me
I could tell you didn’t read
At least not my work
Not that into creative thinking
Unless someone inspired you deeply
And not too worried about worldly problems
All that ever really mattered was
You were a sexy ass man
Remember that time I caught your attention?
You already had mines
I had been obsessing over your looks
The fact that God had given you the perfect skin color
And he was whispering in your sleep
For you to keep those abs up
I imagined you naked long before I requested pictures
And unlike other men, I knew you’d send them
I knew that I probably couldn’t handle you
You’d be way too much for me
Too handsome, how many women are checking for you?
Easily deceptive, are you sure you don’t have a girlfriend?
But the time has come
And although we’re not meant to last
Let’s do this right
Love me down and I’ll do the same for you


Everyone's Broke, According To GoFundMe


On the main page of GoFundMe you can find people asking for money for everything from funeral payments to family trips to Disney World. Throughout social media links to the site are scattered everywhere. People are asking for help with their hospital bills, rent payments, to get their Uber money back, and even to help them self publish books. Does this mean everyone is broke?

While we can never be prepared for the death of a loved one, we can be prepared to take a cab ride. We should have an expectation of how much that cab ride is going to cost before we get in. We should also make sure we have the money to cover it. However, with the invention of a ride called Uber, some people aren't calling regular cabs. They're calling these Uber rides in attempts to save money. Uber is generally paid for before the person enters the ride, but in some cases the person paying may not actually check the cost. That is where GoFundMe comes in. Within the last year women have been creating pages to help pay for their Uber that somehow ended up costing them hundreds of dollars. Why did they not see this coming?

Then there are books that haven't been created yet because of lack of money. One upon a time I had this dream of becoming an author. Back then it seemed like the majority of people my age hated the idea of reading. As I grew up I discovered there were actually a ton of people just waiting to write stories that others would buy. In 2015 some people with dreams of becoming an author aren't waiting for others to buy the book. They are instead requesting money to make the book happen. Publishing does cost money, but does this mean that these people are broke?

This is a time where having the nicest of everything is valued. We have to have nice clothes, be able to watch the best of television, have a nice place to live in, drive the nicest cars, food on our plates, get good sleep, and have no debt to our names. Yet, at the same time there are a lot of people begging for money though funding sites like GoFundMe. Something is wrong.

Monday, November 2, 2015

Adina Howard~ Bad 4 Me



Embracing The Financial Burden of Getting Older

As the day came closer I started making preparations. Doctors appointments happened and new charges were added to my credit card. There were things that needed to be done, but there was an even bigger need going on deep inside of me. That need was to feel extra special as a new birthday approached.

However, there was a lesson attached in trying to make turning a year older special. I'm 29, almost 30, and the money spent to really make it enjoyable came out of my own pockets. I went to a concert, purchased new needed items for my place, did doctors and dentists appointments, and watched my credit card balance rise more.

There are more items that I need, but they will wait. 29 is officially the year where I have to embrace the financial issues that come with being an adult. I really had most of it under control until I found out earlier this year that we don't get the same amount in tax returns every single year. My return in the previous years were always nice enough amounts to where I could pay credit card back down to $0, but not this time.

At 29 I'm going to try my best to not complain about financial responsibilities. I'm trying to embrace it. I'm trying to embrace high credit card balances, bills that won't stay the same amount monthly, and events that cost a lot of money but my heart won't let me miss. I'm going to embrace that fact that no one is funding my expensive habits and embrace when I have to cut back on some of the more fun stuff I like to do.

Even more importantly, I'm going to hold onto that childish joy that still lives inside of me.

P.S.
I'm working on an upcoming book titled "Woman Manifested." It's very creative and personal at the same time. As Erykah Badu once said, "I'm an artist and I'm sensitive about my shit," so please support it when it is released.



Lashuntrice

Lashuntrice