Author: Gesi Lloyd

The rocket did not launch. Nicki Minaj still made it a moment. On May 21, the rapper appeared at SpaceX’s Starbase facility in Boca Chica, Texas, during a planned livestream for the Starship V3 test flight. She was featured on the broadcast, where she described the event as historic and encouraged her fanbase, known as the Barbz, to follow along with SpaceX’s work. She also offered public praise to Elon Musk, thanking him for what she called his contributions to humanity. Minaj arrived in a graphic tee printed with ‘Starship,’ a nod to her 2012 hit ‘Starships,’ from her sophomore…

Lupita Nyong’o is not interested in the argument. Since Christopher Nolan announced she would play Helen of Troy in his upcoming adaptation of The Odyssey, the Kenyan-Mexican actress has faced a wave of criticism online, some of it racially charged, over the decision to cast a Black woman in the role. Her response, given in a recent interview with Elle magazine, was measured and firm: she has no plans to defend herself. Nyong’o said the criticism would continue regardless of whether she engaged with it, and that her focus remains on the work and on Nolan’s vision for the film.…

The number of airlines that have collapsed or sought bankruptcy protection in 2026 grew again this week. A Mexican low-cost charter carrier filed for bankruptcy protection in the First District Court for Bankruptcy Proceedings in Mexico City, roughly a month after grounding all of its flights. The filing marks the latest casualty in an aviation industry battered by rising fuel costs and shrinking margins, and it follows a pattern that has become grimly familiar over the past several months. The airline had initially told passengers in mid-April that cancellations were the result of operational problems and would last only two…

Rob Base did not set out to change music. He was just looking for a good sample. The Harlem rapper, born Robert Ginyard, died on Friday surrounded by family after a private battle with cancer, just days after his 59th birthday. His passing was confirmed through a statement posted to his official Instagram account, which described him as a loving father, family man, friend and creative force whose impact on an entire generation will not be forgotten. He is best known as one half of Rob Base & DJ E-Z Rock, the duo responsible for “It Takes Two,” a 1988…

The Dallas Wings and Atlanta Dream meet for the second time this season Friday night at Gateway Center Arena in College Park, Georgia. Tip-off is set for 7:30 p.m. ET and the game airs nationally on ION. Fans without cable can stream the matchup on Fubo or DIRECTV, both of which offer free trials for new subscribers. Dallas enters the game at 3-2 after winning back-to-back contests, while Atlanta sits at 2-1 and has yet to win a game at home this season. Every game the Dream have played has been decided by five points or fewer, which makes their…

For the second time this month, winter is asserting itself across the Rocky Mountain region. A cold storm system is spreading snow through high terrain from Montana down through Colorado and Wyoming, arriving at a time of year when accumulating snow is supposed to be increasingly rare. For some communities, this marks the second significant snowstorm of May, and forecasters say it will behave differently from the one that rolled through earlier in the month. How this storm differs from the last one The storm that hit during the first week of May had a broader footprint, landing heavily on…

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander has won his second consecutive NBA Most Valuable Player(MVP)  award, ESPN’s Shams Charania reported Sunday. The official announcement was scheduled for 7:30 p.m. ET on Prime Video, arriving one day before the Thunder open their Western Conference finals series against the San Antonio Spurs. With the honor now secured, Gilgeous-Alexander joins a group of 14 players in league history to win the award in back-to-back seasons. A season built on efficiency The numbers behind this MVP tell a story that goes beyond the box score. Gilgeous-Alexander averaged 31.1 points per game, second in the league behind Luka Doncic,…

Coco Gauff’s path to the Italian Open final has not looked pretty. She has dropped sets in three of her five matches in Rome, saved a match point against Iva Jovic in the round of 16, and came from a set down to beat Solana Sierra in the third round after losing the opening set. The scorelines tell the story of a player grinding through the draw rather than gliding through it. After the Sierra match, Gauff explained why in terms that went well beyond tennis. She described the day as one where motivation had been hard to find before…

When Swatch and luxury Swiss watchmaker Audemars Piguet announced they were working together, the watch world started speculating immediately. Many assumed the result would be an affordable take on the Royal Oak, one of the most coveted wristwatches ever produced. What arrived instead was something entirely different: a rainbow-colored pocket watch. The Royal Pop collection borrows the Royal Oak’s most iconic design details, including its octagonal bezel and textured dial, and rebuilds them in a pop-art spirit using Swatch’s Bioceramic material. The watches measure 40mm and come in two crown configurations, both powered by a manually wound movement with a…

Online political content is increasingly shaped by formats designed for speed, humor, and shareability. Among the most unusual examples are AI-generated videos that blend Lego-style animation with hip-hop tracks to comment on geopolitical tensions, including the long-running strain between the United States and Iran. These clips often circulate on social platforms as satire, yet their framing and distribution raise questions about intent and influence. The videos typically compress complex political narratives into short, visually playful scenes. Public figures are stylized in simplified animations, while hip-hop beats drive the pacing. The result is content that feels closer to entertainment than analysis,…