2nd Look: 90 Girls Pregnant at Memphis High School

Before I begin, I want to say that I think that it is my life's calling to mentor and help young African-American teenage girls to become successful and respectable women. In our society, there is already so many things stacked against us, so I want them to know that they can be what they want to be. I want their goals to be to go to college, begin successful careers and NOT have babies because that can jeopardize their futures.


It was first reported earlier this month that more than 90 girls at Frayser High School in Memphis were either pregnant or had recently had babies. This adds up to approx. 20% of the female population at the school. I don't know if this is caused by peer pressure or lack of sexual education, but I feel that it is a shame that it got this bad and to this level before there was some attention given to the issue. I am sure that this didn't not happen all at once, and there should have been programs in place to combat this problem in its early stages.

When I saw this story, my heart literally started to hurt for these girls. I started to think about how many of these girls have low self-esteem and probably don't even know their self-worth. Whether it was a boy telling them what they want to hear or some kind of "pregnancy pact", I immediately felt that they must know know how wonderful they are and don't make responsible decisions for themselves. These girls also need role models who are SHOWING them & not just telling them what are the right decisions to make. I hope to be one of those role models for them, both locally and nationally, in the future (that is my DREAM).

A particularly sad part of this story to me was seeing Terikka Sutton, a 16-year-old who is one of the teen moms at the school, talking about the issue while holding her 2-month-old daughter. I saw her struggling while holding the baby and could see that she was overwhelmed by the challenges of being a teen mom in her eyes and hear it in her voice. However, she gave some of the most powerful quotes:

It's a shame that all of these girls at Frayser (are) pregnant, but it ain't nothing new. Some girls try to get pregnant because they think it's cute and some (are) an accident. They probably plan what they are gonna do to get pregnant.  They need a class to teach the girls to use protection and not to try to get pregnant. 

This story should be a learning experience for ALL young teenage women. In our society, teen pregnancy and motherhood are almost glorified by shows like "16 & Pregnant" and "Teen Mom" and some girls are actually looking at having a baby as a way to get famous. This is a problem that needs to start at home because parents cannot continue to tip-toe around the issue and then be SURPRISED when their daughters come home pregnant (Hello Sarah Palin). There has to be a nationwide effort to help raise the self-esteem of these young girls so that they are not making such destructive decisions.


Here is the video from MSNBC of the interview with Terikka:

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

Here is another video that I found from CNN Prime News:

10 Things I Didn't Like About "The Game" This Week

I was willing to give the new season of "The Game" a chance on a new network, especially after the extensive marketing and promotion of the show. I was also willing to ignore ALL of the criticism that the show would not be as good because it was on BET. I thought that the show would be a revival for the network, but after this "Wing King" episode, I am starting to believe the hype. 

There were SOOOOO many things WRONG with this episode, but I decided to narrow them down to 10:

1. Tee Tee's WING TRUCK- REALLY???? I'm still mad about this one...must he be pushing CHICKEN? As good of an assistant as he was for Malik, I'm sure that he could have used his skills for a better business venture.
2. Jaz planting MORE insecurity into Melanie- She is already insecure as it is with the baby mama drama in her life and trying to keep Derwin. I didn't like how Jaz was able to get under Melanie's skin so easily.
3. Tasha was TOO much- I didn't like how she was heckling Melanie when she was trying to run her bougie yet classy meeting and event. I also didn't like how she didn't defend Melanie when Jaz was talking reckless to her. She actually defended JAZ...& was TOO quick to jump on those sunflower seeds and Now & Laters. I don't wanna wanna use the "G" word, but THAT was GHETTO!
4. SUNFLOWER SEEDS AND GRAPE DRINK???- & while we are on the subject of sunflower seeds, why did Jaz have to bring that stuff to the Sunbeams' event? I know that they girls took a liking to that over Melanie's sandwiches but why couldn't they try something NEW?
5. Positive (yet bougie) message from Melanie overrun by Jaz's "Video Girl" fantasy- First of all, I have NOTHING against grown women who make the decision to become video girls for whatever reason. However, it is HARD to send a positive message to young girls that they can be strong and respectable women with people like Kim Kardashian and Nicki Minaj running around. These women, including Jaz (who went from video girl to groupie, slept with 1/2 the Sabres, and then married one) are the EXCEPTION, not the rule. 
6. Can Malik NOT function as a grown man on his own???- Must he always have handlers, groupies, or his MAMA by his side? And can I get ONE episode please w/out a crotch or booty shot of a STRIPPER???? & when did lovable Malik become such an A**hole???
7. Melanie runs the SUNBEAMS now???- Is this the SAME Dr. Melanie Barnette-Davis who finally got through med school and can practice medicine? The one who HATED the Sunbeams all those years??? SMH
8. Where is "the GAME"???- I know that the show is mainly about the personal lives of the players, but there has always been a football aspect that I haven't seen yet this season. Maybe they are in the off-season...IDK 
9. Where was JASON?????- He has always been one of my favorite characters because he is PURE COMEDY and after last week's "Dip & Pitts" I wanted to see more of him, but he was nowhere to be found this week. 
10. Malik arrested hunting chicken & TAZED by a white cop- IDK why but the phrase "Don't taze me bro" came to mind. I know that he was looking for Tee Tee's wing truck but why did he have to put himself in that situation in the first place. 

I hate to say it...but after this episode it is OFFICIAL..."The Game" is going down...FAST!!!!! It keeps getting WORSE & WORSE :-( I would hate to see this show get cancelled AGAIN after all the fighting that its fans did for it. 

Oprah's "Family Secret": She Has A Half-Sister

Just when I thought that I knew EVERYTHING there was to know about my girl Oprah, she began advertising an episode of her show's final season that involved a family secret. Initially, I thought that it would be a child that she put up for adoption years ago or a reconciliation with her estranged mother, Vernita Lee. However, Oprah's revelation was that she recently found out that she has a half-sister from Milwaukee named Patricia.

I thought that it was great for Oprah to reveal this on her show, not just for ratings, but so that she can begin to build a relationship with her sister. She did it on her terms (and on her own show) and was ahead of the story without it being in the tabloids. I also was surprised that this was never told to the tabloids by Patricia or anyone else who may have known. I also liked how Oprah was open to Patricia's story and willing to not only meet her but claim her as her sister. Patricia could have taken a paycheck and gone to the tabloids about what she knew, but it was more about her filling the holes in her own life.

It was revealed on the show and on Oprah's website that Patricia was put up for adoption at birth and that she was place in foster home after foster home for seven years afterwards. She now had 2 children, a daughter named Aquarius and a son named Andre, who she has been raising on her own.

It was in 2007 that she began to try to track down her biological family and received her adoption records. When the adoption agency contacted her birth mother, she called back a month later & said that she was not interested in meeting her. On the same day, she saw Vernita, Oprah's mother, in an interview on TV, where she revealed details about Oprah's two "deceased" half-siblings that matched information in Patricia's birth documents.

I hope that Oprah and Patricia are able to make something of this revelation and build a relationship with each other. I don't believe that she is looking for a paycheck or any kind of support, but I'm sure that as a sister, Oprah will help her out if she needs it.

Maya Angelou Gives Life Lessons on "Master Class"

On January 16th, the 3rd episode of Oprah Presents: Master Class w/ legendary author and poet Maya Angelou premiered on OWN. As a writer, I have always been a fan of Maya Angelou's poetry so I was looking forward to hearing her story and what she would bring to the inspiring program, and I was NOT disappointed. 


Angelou began by talking about her age and that she has enjoyed getting older. She said that her 60's were good, she loved her 70's and that she thought the 80's would slow down but they have not. She said that she has a book of poetry and a cookbook coming out in the coming year and that she is hard at work. "I'm just trying to make it through the 80's". 


One of the things that she spoke about was that she understands the power of words. She explained that words are things and that you must be careful with them. She said that negative words (racial and sexual slurs, calling people out of their name) can get in all of your stuff like a bad smell. 


One of the most powerful stories that she shared was from her childhood. When she was 3 years old, she moved to Arkansas with her brother Bailey to live with their grandmother. Just 4 years later, she moved to St. Louis with her mother, whose boyfriend raped her when she was only 7 years old. She did not tell anyone but Bailey, and when the man was found dead days later, she thought that she had killed him by telling. She stopped talking at the age of 7 and so her mother sent her back to her grandmother. 


It was then that she was given a notebook and pencil by her grandmother so she could write everything down. She began reading books and found a love for poetry. She recalls reading "Sonnet 29" by William Shakespeare and saying that she thought that he was a black girl in the south: 

When in disgrace with Fortune and men's eyes, I all alone beweep my outcast state, and trouble deaf heaven with my bootless cries, and look upon myself and curse my fate...

 This quote made her feel as though Shakespeare knew what it was like to be raped. Although she did not talk, Mrs. Flowers, one of her teachers, took her to the library to read books. When she saw that Angelou liked poetry, she said to her: "You will never love poetry until you speak it". Angelou says that it was then that she started to speak again, and that she has not stopped since.


Another meaningful quote to me was when she talked about how she loved to dance but had to give it up when her knees went bad. She said that was a singer too but didn't love it and wouldn't sacrifice for it. "You can only be great at something you are willing to sacrifice for."


Angelou also offers advice about love:

"I am grateful to have been loved and to be loved now and to be able to love, because that liberates. Love liberates. It doesn't just hold—that's ego. Love liberates. It doesn't bind.'"

Lastly, she says that anyone who dares to do something can do it, and quotes Roman playwright Terence:

"If a human being dreams a great dream, dares to love somebody; if a human being dares to be Martin King, or Mahatma Gandhi, or Mother Theresa, or Malcolm X; if a human being dares to be bigger than the condition into which she or he was born—it means so can you. And so you can try to stretch, stretch, stretch yourself so you can internalize, 'Homo sum, humani nil a me alienum puto. I am a human being, nothing human can be alien to me.' That's one thing I'm learning."

"The Game" Returns & Brings the DRAMA!!!!!

After months of reruns on BET, I had anxiously awaited the return of one of my favorite shows, "The Game" on 1-11-11. It was WELL worth the wait, although I had found out virtually EVERYTHING about the 1st episode through internet leaks. I was ready to see what BET would do with the show, after a BIG campaign of commercials and all-day marathons for it on the network. I was happy that the entire cast and crew was back and wanted to see what had happened with the Sabres & Sunbeams 2 years later.

My girl Tasha Mack is still a manager and has made Derwin into a superstar while still mantaining a lovelife with new younger boo Dante (played by 106&Park host and NC A&T alum Terrence J) who she wants to keep a secret because of his age. She has since fell out with Kelly, who is filming a reality show called "Ex-Baller Wives" and proceeding to tell all of Jason's business and spend all of his money. The newfound wealth and fame has definitely gone to her head.

Jason is still up to his crazy antics but this time he is trying to make Kelly look bad by sabotaging her show. I didn't like how they replaced the original Britney and made her a teenager all of a sudden (Wasn't she like 10 years old the last time we saw her??? 10+2 does NOT equal 16). Malik is now going through a mini mid-life crisis because he is not the "$40 million kid" anymore and is pretty much a a**-hole now. He has issues with the new team owner (whose wife he is having an affair with...JUICY!) and can't let go of his ex-assistant (and one of my favorite characters) Tee Tee, who is trying to do his own thing. 

But the biggest DRAMA of all, of course, falls with Melanie & Derwin. She is a wife now & is having a BIG photo shoot with Essence, but as soon as Janay walks in with the baby, it all falls down.She secretly gives the baby a paternity test, but a mistake shows that they baby IS his after she told him it was not. The DRAMA ensues. 

I can't wait to see the drama that unfolds in this season. Some people thought that the 1st episode was disappointing but I am just glad that it is FINALLY back. Can't wait until next Tuesday!!!!!

2nd Look: Marsha Ambrosius "Far Away" video

It took me a few minutes and a couple of time watching it to understand exactly what happens in this video, but I definitely understood the message right away.

In the video for the 2nd single from her upcoming album, Late Nights and Early Mornings, Marsha Ambrosius provides a message for a problem that is both chilling and totally preventable: bullying.

The video uses strong images to get the point across and show just how ignorance some people can be. It is 2011 and the LGBT community deserve the same rights and respect as everyone else.

In the video, Marsha is seen walking with a tall, dark and handsome brother in a park, and everything is fine. They are both smiling and waving at the people in the park including a mother with two small children, and the guy even daps up some other guys.

Then he comes over to Marsha's house for dinner, and is greeted by another guy who he hugs and kisses. Their embrace suggests that they are together but maybe hiding it from Marsha. The two guys are later seen canoodling and one of them wipes a tear away from the other's eyes, perhaps symbolizing the emotions that he may feel from what people say about their relationship and sort of foreshadows what it to come.

As they are walking hand-in-hand through the same park that he and Marsha did, they are confronted by the ignorance and hatred that views their relationship as wrong. The same mother with the two children takes them away when he tries to speak to them again, and the other guys also look at him differently when he waves. They then gang up on him and beat him up.

Marsha then receives a phone call from him, but it is too late as he has died while on the phone with her after taking too many pills. A letter that he wrote to her is laying on the table, stained by spilled wine. At the end of the video, a letter from Marsha is displayed on the screen:

Here is the video:

Kanye West "Monster": Is This What We've Come To Expect?

The video for Kanye West's new single "Monster" featuring Jay-Z, Rick Ross, Nicki Minaj & Bon Iver was leaked on the internet last week. 

This is the only appropriate picture that I am willing to put on my blog. 


I am a fan of Kanye West's music and have always supported him despite his crazy antics throughout his career. I was cool when he made Selita Ebanks a bird in the "Runaway" video or had moving art with alleged "Illuminati" symbols in the "Power" video. 


But this one...disturbed me. I understand that West is known to "think outside of the box", but is what we have come to expect from him? Yes, this video might fit the nature of the song but I mean REALLY...the very 1st image that you see is a woman hanged. 


And it doesn't get any better from there. You see Kanye in a bed with 2 dead women, and he starts moving them around in compromising positions. Then there is a woman dragging a dead body, 2 more people eating from one with blood on their faces, and all kinds of dismembered bodies. The kicker is Kanye West standing against the wall with a decapitated head. 


I thought that the song was about being a "MONSTER" in hip-hop and in music, which explains the cameos by Jay-Z, Rick Ross, and Nicki Minaj (who was torturing herself in the video while wearing a dominatrix outfit), but I guess Kanye took it by its literal sense. Either way, I did not like the video and was turned off by it, even though I do like the song. 


Here is the video, but I don't know how long it is going to be available:

~Elle Shanice~ APPROVED: Oprah Presents Master Class: Jay-Z

On New Year's Day, Oprah Winfrey premiered her new network OWN with an original series called "Oprah Presents: Master Class", which is an in-depth look into the lives of 8 people who have become "masters" of their craft.

In the first episode, music mogul Jay-Z opens up about his life, career, relationships, and his overall mindset. I have been a fan of his for years, but recently I have realized just how truly intelligent he is. I have been pleasantly surprised lately with how eloquently he speaks and it is something that will help him continue to be a force in pop culture for years to come. One of my favorite quotes from the show was his personal definition of "excellence":

Excellence is performing at a high level for a long period of time.  

He then said that he believes that he has reached excellence in his craft, and I would have to agree. When he was talking about his upbringing, he made some good points that seem to be from a secure but humble place. It doesn't seem that he lets him legendary success get to him. He talked about how he has learned more from failure than success and that the fear of failure can be paralyzing to most people.

Another part of the interview that I found intriguing was when shared his belief that you get back what you put into the world, and that philosophy is something that we both agree on. He said he believes in karma and that it is the energy and work that you put out and the way that you treat people that determines how you are treated. The biggest thing that I took away from his interview was his mentality about not being afraid to stay true to yourself.

Knowing who you are is the foundation of everything great. 

The more I learn about Jay-Z personally makes me become a bigger fan of his because I am getting to know him outside of his music and how his life experiences truly influence it. Check out the video of the interview below.