Small Talk: Out of Genoa

[Cupid Stunt]

Former Fleetwood Mac guitarist Danny Kirwan has died of unknown causes at the age of 68. 

Kirwan was a member of the group between 1968 and 1972, and made major songwriting and performance contributions to four of their studio albums: 1969's Then Play On, 1970's Kiln House, 1971's Future Games and 1972's Bare Trees.

Already a highly respected guitarist in his teens, Peter Green and Fleetwood convinced Kirwan to ditch his existing band and incorporated the young prodigy into a three-guitar Fleetwood Mac lineup -- then made up of Mick Fleetwood, John McVie, Peter Green, and Jeremy Spencer.

Kirwan was a quantum leap ahead for the band. The first album to feature contributions from him was their third full-length Then Play On, released in 1969. After the departures of Green and Spencer, Kirwan became the group's de facto frontman, and the diverse influences featured in his songwriting pushed the band past their original blues roots and closer to the sound with which they'd find the greatest commercial success after his departure.

However it wouldn't be long before the combination of substance abuse, highly intense personality, and deteriorating relationship with the rest of the band would spell the end of his time in Fleetwood Mac, as the group fired him during the Bare Trees tour in the fall of 1972.

A few years after his dismissal, Kirwan attempted to launch a solo career. But over the next half-decade his three albums failed to make any significant waves, and he vanished from the public eye. In a 1993 Independent interview, Kirwan revealed that he had been living in a hostel for homeless people for several years, and offered his own perspective on why his time in the band came to an end.

"I've been through a bit of a rough patch but I'm not too bad. I get by and I suppose I am homeless, but then I've never really had a home since our early days on tour," Kirwan said. "I couldn't handle it all mentally and I had to get out. I can't settle. I couldn't handle the lifestyle and the women and the traveling."

He remained estranged from his former band mates, and failed to appear when he was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as a member of Fleetwood Mac in 1998. After Bob Welch’s departure in 1974, Lindsey Buckingham and Stevie Nicks joined, creating the best-known lineup of Fleetwood Mac.

Divorced, Kirwan is survived by a son.

From Then Play On,  Oh Well 1969

[Cupid Stunt]

 

Metal Rules! Day 28 and they still don't know I'm a dog. 

[Cupid Stunt]

We attended a Stunt niece wedding Saturday, and the newlyweds and family are coming over for dinner tonight. I decided to cook for comfort, and made one of my favorite, decadent recipes … Anthony Bourdain’s Lasagna Bolognese:

 

Lasagna Bolognese

Total time: About 4 hours, plus cooling time 

Serves 8-10 per 13-inch by 9-inch pan 
Note: Tweaked for dry noodle construction. From a recipe in “Appetites: A Cookbook” by Anthony Bourdain. 

BECHAMEL SAUCE

6 tablespoons butter
6 tablespoons flour
1 quart milk
Salt and pepper
Pinch freshly ground nutmeg, optional

1. In a medium, heavy-bottom saucepan, heat the butter over medium heat until it foams and subsides. Whisk in the flour and stir it well using a wooden spoon, incorporating it into the butter until a dry paste forms (a roux). Reduce the heat and continue to cook and stir, taking care not to let the mixture brown.

2. Meanwhile, in a large saucepan, bring the milk to a simmer, then gradually whisk it into the pan with the roux, continuing to whisk until the mixture is smooth. Season with 1/2 teaspoon salt and a pinch of pepper, or to taste, along with the nutmeg, if using. Continue to cook over medium-low heat, stirring regularly, until the sauce is thick enough to coat the back of a wooden spoon, about 10 minutes.
This makes about 4 cups béchamel.

LASAGNA BOLOGNESE

3 tablespoons olive oil, divided
1 large white or yellow onion, finely chopped
2 large or 3 medium carrots, finely chopped
3 ribs celery, finely chopped
4 garlic cloves, finely chopped
½ teaspoon fresh thyme leaves
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
½ pound chicken livers, trimmed of connective tissue and fat and finely chopped
¾ pound ground beef chuck
¾ pound ground veal
¾ pound ground pork
¾ cup tomato paste (about 6 ounces)
1 cup Vermentino, Trebbiano or other Tuscan white wine
1 ½ cups milk
2 bay leaves
About 1 pound dry, flat lasagna noodles
4 cups béchamel sauce (recipe above)
¾ cup finely grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese
6 ounces fresh mozzarella cheese, thinly sliced

1. To make the Bolognese sauce, in a medium, heavy-bottom pot, heat 2 tablespoons oil over medium-high heat. Add the onion, carrots, celery, garlic and thyme and season with ½ teaspoon salt and several grinds of pepper, or to taste. Cook, stirring regularly using a wooden spoon, until the vegetables are tender and have released their juices, 7 to 9 minutes. Stir in the livers and cook over high heat for 2 minutes, then add the beef, veal and pork, stirring and breaking up over high heat. Season with 1 teaspoon salt and several grinds pepper, or to taste. Continue to cook over high heat until the meat is brown, stirring regularly and scraping the bottom of the pan as necessary to keep the meat and vegetables from scorching.

2. Once the meat is browned, stir in the tomato paste over medium heat. Cook for about 20 minutes, stirring regularly, to marry the flavors. Add the wine, bring to a boil and cook until the wine is reduced by half, then add the milk and bay leaves and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to a simmer and cook for 1½ to 2 hours, stirring occasionally. You may need to add a bit of water (or chicken or veal stock, if you have it) to thin the sauce if it thickens too much.

3. Taste the sauce and season with 1 teaspoon salt and several grinds of pepper, or as needed. Remove from heat and stir to release the steam and allow it to cool slightly. Skim the fat off the top with a ladle and discard.

4. Heat the oven to 350 degrees.

5. Coat the inside of a 13-inch by 9-inch (or similar size) baking dish with the remaining tablespoon oil. Cover the bottom of the dish with a layer of béchamel. Sprinkle over some grated cheese, then top with a layer of noodles. Top the noodles with a layer of Bolognese sauce, and repeat with the béchamel, grated cheese, noodles, and Bolognese until the pan is filled to the top. The top layer should be Bolognese, dotted with béchamel.

6. Place the baking dish on a foil-lined sheet pan and bake in the oven for 30 minutes, and remove pan from oven. Lay thin slices of mozzarella across the top of béchamel, and return to oven. Bake an additional 20-25 minutes or until the lasagna is browned on top and beginning to bubble (about 50 minutes total baking time). Remove pan and set aside to cool. If you must serve it the day you’ve made it, set it aside to rest for 15 minutes before slicing. For best results, allow the lasagna to cool completely and refrigerate overnight. The next day, remove from refrigerator to sit on counter for 40 minutes; preheat at 350 degrees, covered pan loosely with foil, bake until bubbling (30-40 minutes). Remove from oven and rest 20 minutes before serving.

 

 

Serving with wine, antipasto, romaine salad with vinaigrette, baguettes and strawberry pie. 

[peacheslatour]

Mmmm, that sounds heavenly. What time should I be there?

[Cupid Stunt]

The Bolognese sauce is absolutely worth the time! I double the recipe so there's extra to stash in the freezer.

I'll have to add to the little kids rickety card table, but you and Mr.Latour can sit on either side of Nana -- You'll have a great time. 

Cocktail hour starts at 4. Dinner at 5.

[peacheslatour]

Lazy Sunday, wanna talk about health?

Probiotics. Do the do anything?

How about that GOLO diet? 

[Cupid Stunt]

20 hours ago, peacheslatour said:

Lazy Sunday, wanna talk about health?

Probiotics. Do the do anything?

They way I understand the premise for the claims of probiotic products, they are essentially strains of easily grown bacteria that are thought to benefit the gastrointestinal tract. A healthy body is already teeming with microbes, flora and bugs that help to digest food, break down toxins, and keep the lining of our intestines healthy. 

Most probiotic products on the market have not been through any sort of clinical trial to prove they do anything at all. And an even smaller number of them have gone through the Food and Drug Administration testing before reaching the consumer market. Typically, all medications, either prescribed or over-the-counter, that claim to treat a specific condition must go through the FDA to ensure they are both safe and effective for consumer use. Supplements that don’t claim to treat specific conditions aren’t forced to go through a testing and screening process, and the majority of probiotic products fall into this category.

The Scientific American has a good article on the subject.

Quote

How about that GOLO diet? 

The two people I know that followed the GOLO diet lost the most weight in their wallets. 

After reading the GOLO site it says its plan "optimizes your insulin" and prompts the body to release stored fat and reduce future fat storage by improving insulin performance and managing other key hormones related to weight gain. However, the site doesn't actually explain how it "optimizes your insulin" or improves "insulin performance" or stimulates latent key hormones. That might be because there's no way to change how insulin "performs," You can increase your body's insulin sensitivity, but that has nothing to do with the way insulin does its job. In other words, "Insulin performance" sounds more like a marketing buzzword with no scientific evidence behind it.

Were GOLO diet able to reverse/control insulin resistance, prediabetes, and Type 2 diabetes, former diabetics and their doctors would be singing its praises from every street corner.

 

If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is … 

[peacheslatour]

Sigh, that's pretty much what I figured. I never try anything without researching it and there is no one I trust more than Preverts to tell the truth. I have lost twenty pounds in the last year by eating a lot of raw veggies but that last few pounds in the lower abdomen are proving stubborn as hell. I can do one hundred crunches a day and nothing.

[valleycliffe]

my daughter is on the keto diet right now and says she has lost 21 lbs..

it is low carb hi fat i think.

she was on a paleo diet, lost just about 50 lbs.  then she went on holidays, then christmas came and before she knew it, she had regained most of what she lost..

she said this diet was easier for her to stay on.

[ByTor]

22 hours ago, Cupid Stunt said:

After reading the GOLO site it says its plan "optimizes your insulin" and prompts the body to release stored fat and reduce future fat storage by improving insulin performance and managing other key hormones related to weight gain.

Does it mean in the sense of controlling the release of insulin?  It's said that high carb diets increase your blood sugar, which causes a greater release of insulin, and increased insulin levels cause the carbs to be stored as fat.  

[Cupid Stunt]

6 hours ago, ByTor said:

Does it mean in the sense of controlling the release of insulin?  It's said that high carb diets increase your blood sugar, which causes a greater release of insulin, and increased insulin levels cause the carbs to be stored as fat.  

Perhaps, but there's no way to know. The site doesn't explain the GOLO theory, only that by buying the books, following the diet plan, and using their specially formulated supplements will you "change your insulin performance."

[ByTor]

1 hour ago, Cupid Stunt said:

Perhaps, but there's no way to know. The site doesn't explain the GOLO theory, only that by buying the books, following the diet plan, and using their specially formulated supplements will you "change your insulin performance."

LOL when I hear someone trying to sell supplements my 1st thought is to run far away from that.

[Cupid Stunt]

[Cupid Stunt]

For fans of free-climbing trash pandas … Raccoon captivates internet with Minnesota skyscraper climb

[Snaporaz]

Achtung, @peacheslatour!  If you need anything at the store this week, avert your eyes from the magazine rack.  Your favorite celebrity chef is gracing the cover of People, and unfortunately, it doesn't look like a "how did everything turn to shit" story, but more like a "be jealous of my fantastic life, pissants" kind of story.  I don't want you to see it and have a rage blackout and start throwing canned goods at the people in line in front of you.

[Cupid Stunt]

1 hour ago, Snaporaz said:

Achtung, @peacheslatour!  If you need anything at the store this week, avert your eyes from the magazine rack.  Your favorite celebrity chef is gracing the cover of People, and unfortunately, it doesn't look like a "how did everything turn to shit" story, but more like a "be jealous of my fantastic life, pissants" kind of story.  I don't want you to see it and have a rage blackout and start throwing canned goods at the people in line in front of you.

Magazines like People are known as My Agent and Public Relations Team Are Getting a Bonus This Week Because They Got My Mug Shot On The Cover publications. The magazine was created to control the message, massage public opinion, sell the next big thing, puff-piece the latest terrible movie, human interest stories to marvel, rich people/movie stars/singers are just like us, flog whatever TV/SerialAbuser/Movie/Book/Murderer project needs publicizing in People's weekly reader. That a serial can opener has a new mercantile/restaurant/floom ride/soft-serve custard stand/World's Biggest Goiter roadside attraction to advertise was only a matter of time, and should be mocked and reviled.

 

On ‎6‎/‎11‎/‎2018 at 2:07 PM, valleycliffe said:

my daughter is on the keto diet right now and says she has lost 21 lbs..

it is low carb hi fat i think.

The keto diet, explained 

[peacheslatour]

11 hours ago, Snaporaz said:

Achtung, @peacheslatour!  If you need anything at the store this week, avert your eyes from the magazine rack.  Your favorite celebrity chef is gracing the cover of People, and unfortunately, it doesn't look like a "how did everything turn to shit" story, but more like a "be jealous of my fantastic life, pissants" kind of story.  I don't want you to see it and have a rage blackout and start throwing canned goods at the people in line in front of you.

Actually on the scale of hate Guy Fieddddi would have to take the top seat. But Ree is almost as bad. They're both hacks who shill the most fattening, unhealthy garbage to the masses who in turn eat that crap right up. No wonder we have an obesity epidemic in this country.

[Cupid Stunt]

 

This is obscene.

[valleycliffe]

6 minutes ago, Cupid Stunt said:

 

This is obscene.

it's also very sad that teachers have to do this to help their students not get shot in classroom...

[peacheslatour]

These are kindergartners right? So, what 5, 6 years old? Sickening.

[Petunia13]

This morning after dropping George off at my moms my brakes went out, light on almost no pedal resistance. Made it safely to a shop by 7:30 am. While waiting I was walking from a Starbucks in a desolate strip mall. A duck was circling a sewer drain squawking. I leaned over and thought I heard chirping. 

Called the animal control woman and after opening 4 drains and coaxing 11 baby ducks were saved, reunited w mom, and relocated to a pond. The fact the mom never gave up and the babies had absolute faith in her was so humbling. 

[peacheslatour]

Petunia! You are my hero!

[boes]

36 minutes ago, Petunia13 said:

This morning after dropping George off at my moms my brakes went out, light on almost no pedal resistance. Made it safely to a shop by 7:30 am. While waiting I was walking from a Starbucks in a desolate strip mall. A duck was circling a sewer drain squawking. I leaned over and thought I heard chirping. 

Called the animal control woman and after opening 4 drains and coaxing 11 baby ducks were saved, reunited w mom, and relocated to a pond. The fact the mom never gave up and the babies had absolute faith in her was so humbling. 

WOW WOW WOW, Petunia!!!  That's fantastic.

[Snaporaz]

Talk about a blessing in disguise, @Petunia13!  You would not have been there at all if you had not lost your brakes.  I'm glad you're safe, and the gods chose wisely when they sent you there, knowing you were the perfect person to deal with that situation.  After all of the surreal and inhumane news lately, I needed a story like that.  It gets the weekend off to a good start!

Edited June 16, 2018 by Snaporaz

[Cupid Stunt]

Well done, and a fortuitous save, Petunia -- For you and the duck.

She must have been exhausted trying to get to her ducklings; female ducks can be aggressive and territorial with young.

 

Thing1 returns from school tomorrow. She stayed to attend Stephen Hawking's interment at Westminster Abbey.

[peacheslatour]

Quote

She must have been exhausted trying to get to her ducklings; female ducks can be aggressive and territorial with young.

Well just think what she had to go through to get those babies. Corkscrew pennii. o_O

[Cupid Stunt]

No one could forget Matt "Guitar" Murphy's contribution to "The Blues Brothers" movie in 1980. The famed blues guitarist, who died Friday at 88 in his adopted home of Miami, played the soul food chef and husband to waitress Aretha Franklin. The couple spar over his desire to reunite with his ne'er-do-well pals, Jake and Elwood Blues, who are on "a mission from God" to put their Blues Brothers band back together again to raise money for a Catholic orphanage in Chicago. The set piece scene featured Franklin's iconic performance of "Think." But for all her volcanic energy, Murphy's declaration that he was "the man" resonated with audiences as he joined Blues Brothers actors Dan Aykroyd and the late John Belushi on the road.

 

After years of session work, Murphy joined the Blues Brothers band, which was based on a Belushi-Aykroyd sketch on "Saturday Night Live." There, Murphy played alongside noted session musicians Donald "Duck" Dunn on bass, Steve Jordan on drums, Steve Cropper on guitar and Paul Shaffer on keyboards. The Blues Brothers' album "Briefcase Full of Blues," released at the height of the disco era on Atlantic Records, was a surprise No. 1 Billboard hit upon its release in November 1978, with its live, revisionist blues material. Murphy was an essential element of the album's two Top 40 singles, "Soul Man" and "Rubber Biscuit."

Born Matthew Tyler Murphy Dec. 29, 1929, in Sunflower, Mississippi. He moved to Memphis with his family as a toddler, Alongside his brother Floyd Murphy, he became a fixture on the Memphis blues scene when they were teenagers. Matt moved from Mississippi to Chicago in 1948 as a sideman with legendary blues artists Howlin' Wolf, Muddy Waters and Memphis Slim. He also played with Ike Turner, Etta James and Sonny Boy Williamson. In the 1970s, before scoring the gig with the Blues Brothers, Murphy was earning notices as sideman to harpist James Cotton. He formed his own band in 1982 and continued to perform 2002, when he suffered a stroke that pushed him into semi-retirement,

Matt Murphy wed Kathy Hemrick November 2011 at their South Miami home and turned their reception into a public event by celebrating the release of his album, "Last Call," at the former Satchmo Blues Bar in Fort Lauderdale. 

 

Go with God, Matt.

[Cupid Stunt]

9 hours ago, peacheslatour said:

Well just think what she had to go through to get those babies. Corkscrew pennii. o_O

It's a Wild Kingdom out there.

[Cupid Stunt]

The Dad Joke Generator

 

Happy Father's Day!

[peacheslatour]

Happy Father's Day to all you dads, stepdads, mentors and other dudes who help raise the young martins.

[SweePea59]

Cupid, do you have an obit for Nick Knox?

[Cupid Stunt]

20 hours ago, SweePea59 said:

Cupid, do you have an obit for Nick Knox?

Once I stopped crying, listening to ‘A Date With Elvis.’

 

Nick Knox, longtime drummer of influential garage punk band The Cramps, has died at the age of 60. The cause of death was cardiogenic shock.

Born Nicholas George Stephanoff on 26 March 1958, Knox was the longest tenured drummer of The Cramps, sitting behind the kit from 1977 to 1991. Knox played in the proto-punk band the Electric Eels before joining Lux Interior and Poison Ivy Rorschach in the Cramps. They were mainstays of New York's CBGB scene alongside the Ramones, Television and others. A Date With Elvis – the title a play on Elvis Presley's 1959 album of the same name – was the band's most commercially successful album. It followed 1980's Songs the Lord Taught Us and 1981 follow-up Psychedelic Jungle. Knox appeared on their fourth release, 1990's Stay Sick! before his departure. Anybody who saw this era of the band knew that Knox’s jet-black hair and the sunglasses framing his stoic face was another key of cool in the pioneering psycho/goth/rockabilly outfit’s chain. 

Knox appeared on the band’s first four studio albums, including 1980’s Songs The Lord Taught Us produced by Big Star’s Alex Chilton, Psychedelic Jungle and 1986’s A Date With Elvis, which became the band’s most commercially successful release. 

In 1991, when Nick Knox left The Cramps and the music scene, he returned to Garfield Heights, Ohio, and kept a low profile. In 2013, Knox appeared on Terminal, an album by Cheese Borger And The Cleveland Steamers, playing drums on three tracks. His last live performance was in 2003 with another notorious Cleveland ensemble, The Pagans, at an event called “Ohio’s Punk Past,” curated and promoted by the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame. Most recently Knox worked with and was described as the “senior advisor” to the Cleveland-based punk band Archie And The Bunkers, and worked closely with the band on their 2017 single on Norton Records, the label started and run by Miriam Linna inn 1996.

Among those paying tribute was Miriam Linna, the Cramps’ previous drummer. In a long Facebook post during which she recalled moments from their four-decade friendship, she said she’d recently visited Knox in an intensive care unit in Cleveland. She reported that they’d reconnected in 2017, during her own illness, and made a point of speaking on the phone every day, noting, “I looked forward to the daily check up calls, and I soon realized that he needed the pep talks as well.” She added, “I thank God that Nicky was a friend of mine. He was one of the kindest, funniest, most amazing human beings ever and I was very lucky to have been in his orbit.”

 

 

 

Survivors include his sister Jeanne Goldberg, nephews, a niece and cousins.

 

Fur Dixon Pays Tribute to Former Bandmate Nick Knox of The Cramps

[Cupid Stunt]

D.J. Fontana, a rock 'n' roll pioneer who rose from strip joints in his native Shreveport, Louisiana, to the heights of musical history as Elvis Presley's first and longtime drummer, has died at 87 June 13, 2018. He died in his sleep in Nashville, and had been suffering complications from breaking his hip in 2016. 

Fontana, a member of the Rock Hall of Fame, was the last surviving member of Elvis' original core of musicians. He met Presley and the others on the Louisiana Hayride, a popular and influential radio and TV country music program based in Shreveport. Staff drummer Fontana asked to join his group for a session broadcast in October 1954. A regional act at the time, the 19-year-old Presley had been recording and touring since the summer with guitarist Scotty Moore and bassist Bill Black, the musicians Sun Records founder Sam Phillips brought in after Elvis turned up at the Memphis, Tennessee-based label's studio. "The Blue Moon Boys," as they called themselves, had been playing a blend of blues, pop and country that was unique at the time, but it was missing something crucial. Elvis and Scotty and Bill were making good music, but it wasn't rock n' roll until D.J. put the backbeat into it,

Dominic Joseph (D.J.) Fontana was the Saturday night staff drummer for the Louisiana Hayride. He always played behind the curtain as in those days drums were considered a musical sacrilege to country music fans. The first time he played with Elvis and the Blue Moon Boys was on October 16, 1954. He played behind the curtain as usual, but after that date he played out in front with the rest of the band. He joined Elvis' group full-time in August of 1955.

When you hear D.J. Fontana playing his drums you are hearing a kid from Shreveport, LA tell you what he thinks music should sound like. Rock 'n' Roll had a clean slate. There were no drum parts written for him on those Elvis records. He dictated the groove and made you feel it. There is no one on this earth that can make music move the way he did. He set the standard for everyone who came after him. Listen close to hits like "Heartbreak Hotel", "Jail House Rock," "Teddy Bear," "Hound Dog," Love Me Tender," "Blue Suede Shoes," and you hear the blueprint of the foundation for all Rock'n'Roll being formed. One can truly appreciate D.J.'s influence on drummers like Ringo and Charlie Watts, and feel his effect on the next forty years of music.

Like all the great drummers, his style is relaxed, disciplined and focused as he works and can disarm any situation. Nothing and no one escapes him from the drum kit dais. He had a direct, get-to-the-point approach to his drumming. Within three takes he has the arrangement dialed in. D.J. played his share of bump and grind strip clubs, and jump joints, and he knew he had nothing to prove. He loved the drums and loved to play. Some people make it look easy (it's not by a long shot). 

Armed with accuracy, power, swing, dynamics, great time and - the biggest compliment of all - simplicity, D.J. rocked Elvis and his greatest catalog of songs ... ever. He did it year after year, record after classic record. D.J. was the real deal.

Fontana also played on Ringo Starr's solo album "Beaucoups of Blues," and worked with country artist Webb Pierce and rockabilly star Gene Vincent, among others. More recently, he and Moore were joined by Helm, Keith Richards and other guests for the 1997 Presley tribute album "All the King's Men." In 2000, he played on Paul McCartney's cover of an early Presley hit, "That's All Right."

D. J. Fontana Talks About His Years With Elvis

Elvis Presley - Blue suede shoes - 1956

D.J. Fontana is survived by his wife Karen.

Edited June 19, 2018 by Cupid Stunt

[Cupid Stunt]

U.S. rappers XXXTentacion and Jimmy Wopo die in separate shootings

(Reuters) - Two up-and-coming U.S. rappers, XXXTentacion and Jimmy Wopo, were killed on Monday in separate shootings near Miami and in Pittsburgh, police and local media reported.

In Florida, the Broward County sheriff’s office said that XXXTentacion, 20, was shot while leaving a motor sports dealership in Deerfield Beach, about 40 miles (64 km) north of Miami.

The rapper, whose real name was Jahseh Dwayne Onfroy, was later pronounced dead, the sheriff’s department said.

“The adult male victim has been confirmed as 20 year old Jahseh Onfroy, aka rapper #XXXTentacion,” the sheriff’s department said in a posting on Twitter.

Two men fled the scene in a dark-colored SUV after one of them opened fire, striking the rapper in what investigators said in a statement appeared to be a possible robbery.

A representative for XXXTentacion’s independent record label could not immediately be reached for comment.

XXXTentacion released his debut album in August 2017. His second album “?” debuted at No.1 on the Billboard 200 album chart when it was released in March.

XXXTentacion was born and raised in Plantation, Florida. According to media reports, he had spent time in jail and youth detention centers and was awaiting trial for domestic violence against his pregnant girlfriend.

His death sparked tributes from the hip-hop community, including from Kanye West. “rest in peace I never told you how much you inspired me when you were here thank you for existing,” West tweeted.

 

 

In the second incident, Jimmy Wopo, 21, died after a double shooting in Pittsburgh, the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette and local television stations reported. Details of the shooting were not immediately available.

In a statement on his Facebook page, Wopo’s manager Taylor Maglin wrote, “I lost my brother today and it’s the worst feeling in the world. He was destined for greatness and he wanted the best for his friends, family and community.”

Wopo, 21, whose real name was Travon Smart, was considered a rising star in the Pittsburgh rap scene and his 2016 “Elm Street” music video has garnered more than six million views on YouTube.

(Billboard) WTAE reports that one of the two victims has been pronounced dead while the other remains in stable condition. The drive-by shooting allegedly took place by the intersection of Wylie Avenue and Duff Street in the city's Hill District neighborhood, reports the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review. 

****NSFW****

Edited June 19, 2018 by Cupid Stunt

[Petunia13]

X besides savagely beating his pregnant gf also physically attacked a gay man in jail. 

This has nothing to do with his murder. But I only knew of him for his hate crimes and speech- not music. 

[Cupid Stunt]

8 hours ago, Petunia13 said:

X besides savagely beating his pregnant gf also physically attacked a gay man in jail. 

This has nothing to do with his murder. But I only knew of him for his hate crimes and speech- not music. 

No argument. X was removed from corporate rotation 10 months ago. We didn't play Jimmy Wopo because of FCC obscenity regulations. That doesn't stop music media/music streaming/internet stations/satellite radio from broadcasting their music.

I have to have this discussion with my station managers and music programmers 5-6 times a year: What do you do when a popular artist is a public menace that's run amok, emotional disaster, monster, murderer, abuser … It's a long list, but corporate has an operations policy that covers these situations.

During one of these meetings (on a unspecified artist) a manager said, "We don't have to glorify or directly censure his music. The simplest fix to this problem is to frame his rapes as seductions … He is a sexy fucker with all that underage pus... Oh, yeah … Um, what I meant … Hey, his fans don't care … the listeners don't care what he does …"

-- "So you're okay with this 40 year old sexy scoundrel manipulating your underage daughter into his Redrum, tying her to a bed, beating and raping her for days until he's bored?" 

"Umm … no."

-- "That's what this guy's been accused of doing to the teenagers that have come forward. What he's accused of doing to adult women is equally heinous. If you can't figure out how to not program his music, I can do it for you. If I have move into this office and do your job …" <shakes head> "You mistake this for a negotiation. This is company policy. Follow it to the letter." 

[valleycliffe]

just watching "guy's grocery games" on the food network...

one of the chef's cut up some shitaki mushrooms and then put them in the deep fryer.  he said when they are cooked, they taste like bacon.

is this true? anyone know?

[Petunia13]

I've had them in a soup and with the seasonings and rice noddles it tastes like gluten free vegan chicken noodle. 

So it has begun the nightmare hell on earth Yulin. 20,000 stolen companion dogs and cats will be tortured to death as maliciously as possible. It seems so outlandish and unfair this happens to the sweetest most loving trusting creatures. Through my friends network I know of 2 trucks of the animals incepted and saved. They are in poor condition (dehydrated, without food for days in the travel after being stolen, sick, some broken bones) but alive. (There's cocker spaniels, goldens, corgis, Pekingese, calico cats, tabbies all sorts of adorable scared babies). This will go on until the 30th. 

I hate to post something so dark but this and the illegal dog and cat meat trade are serious atrocities. Hugging my dog extra hard tonight. 

[Snaporaz]

^I saw a video of one of the trucks that was stopped with 1,000 cats and dogs on it.  They're crammed in cages so tightly they can barely move, and the cages are stacked on top of each other about ten high.  Only humans can be so inhumane.

Edited June 21, 2018 by Snaporaz

[Petunia13]

Yes. When I tell people they don't understand. and the torture is worse than you will ever fathom. 1000x worse.

what's especially hard for me is these dogs rescued were stolen from homes so they already trusted humans and these people preyed on that, and they would lay down their lives to protect a person. Some of them just look so baffled or in what I presume PTSD. A few comfort each other and express joy even with their injuries and exhaustion.

[Cupid Stunt]

Hit Like A Girl Contest 2018

Edited June 21, 2018 by Cupid Stunt

[Cupid Stunt]

People donate millions to help separated families SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — In an outpouring of concern prompted by images and audio of children crying for their parents, hundreds of thousands of people worldwide are donating to nonprofit organizations to help families being separated at the U.S.-Mexico border.

Among those that have generated the most attention is a fundraiser on Facebook started by a Silicon Valley couple, who say they felt compelled to help after they saw a photograph of a Honduran toddler sobbing as her mother was searched by a U.S. border patrol agent. The fundraiser started by David and Charlotte Willner had collected more than $13 million by Wednesday afternoon.

 

Raices -- Refugee and Immigrant Center for Education and Legal Services

[Cupid Stunt]

Today is the summer solstice in the Northern Hemisphere. Consensus is that it's all about sex.

 

Well? What are you waiting for! 

Edited June 21, 2018 by Cupid Stunt

[Petunia13]

Koko just died 

[peacheslatour]

Is 46 old for a gorilla? RIP signing ape.

[OnceSane]

11 hours ago, Cupid Stunt said:

Today is the summer solstice in the Northern Hemisphere. Consensus is that it's all about sex.

 

Well? What are you waiting for! 

No wonder my husband was all over me this morning!

[Cupid Stunt]

Keep up the good work OnceSane.

; )

[valleycliffe]

LOL  the husband was just watching the poker tour championship on one of the sports networks..

one of the players had a hand the announcer called "the motown hand"....

jacks 'n fives.

Edited June 22, 2018 by valleycliffe

[Tippi]

This has been a strangely awful week all round, hasn't it?  TGIF.

I am going to treat myself by looking up the Paul McCartney Riding Around In a Car with James Corden.  I am reading that it was very moving.  I think I have posted somewhere on this site that Sir Paul was my first crush.  Yes, at age 6 or 7, I already had an eye for a cute guy.  My older sister had bought a Beatles album and I wrote on the cover "I love Paul."  Somehow, she didn't ring my neck!

Some of you may get a laugh out of my next crushes, which would have been when I was a pre-teen:  William Shatner and Joe Namath!

[valleycliffe]

broadway joe...........

in the beginning, i liked the rolling stones better..