Friday, December 18, 2015

OUTSTAGN'S YEAR IN REVIEW 2015


The Year 2015 had its share of interesting events that occurred in the entertainment in the ILLINOIS/MISSOURI area. From  the passing of Chicago native sports announcer Stuart Scott and the ratings phenomenon of Chicago filmed TV show EMPIRE to Chicago native comedian/talk show host Sherri Shepherd's custody case and divorce from her husband Lamar Sally and St Louis TV journalist Martin Duggan's passing. The year was ending with  the band Chicago being one of the honorees chosen for the 2016 Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and in the STL area, the heated St Louis Board of Alderman debates and vote to pass the multimillion dollar proposal for the construction of the
Riverfront Stadium and the St Louis Rams  possible move away from the city and their correlation. 

And don'f forget that OUTSTAGN celebrated 10 years!


Below we have the Top 10 Lists of the ILLI MO entertainment news stories that had a national impact and the St. Louis stories that had a national impact. We also listed some of the WHO GOT STYLErs who made an impact and those entertainment personalities whom we lost this year



TOP 10 ILLI MO ENTERTAINMENT NEWS STORIES OF 2015




10.Jackie Robinson West Litttle Leaguers Organization sues for 2014 championship stripped after residency fraud; organization withdraws suit and eventually disbands  





9.Spike Lee's Chi-raq film causes controversy over subject matter  of Chicago violence and questioned by city's mayor Rahm Emanuel. 






8.Caitlyn Jenner's appearance at a LGBT luncheon in Chicago draws  trans protestors about her female authenticity.




7.St Louis Cardinals organization is accused  and federally investigated of computer hacking Houston Astros files; scouting director Chris Correa gets fired from scandal 




6.Nelly 

He gets charged for drugs/gun possession after his tour bus is pulled over in Nashville and  was facing years in prison; charges were eventually dropped/The Nelly and Loose Cannon Slim beef continued on Twitter/Nelly makes surprise appearances at Taylor Swift and Stevie Wonder's concerts at Scott Trade Center in St Louis, Mo.




5.Kanye West 

He announces on this year's MTV Video Awards  after receiving the Video Vanguard Award that he was running for President in 2020/He almost interrupts Beck's Album of Year acceptance speech at this year's Grammy Awards/His last minute fashion show during New York Fashion Week causes a stir of  white blonde models wearing nude brown attire/He and wife Kim Kardashian welcomes another child, a son named Saint. 



4.The Kansas City Royals win the World Series against the New York Mets . It is their first win in 30 years,




3.Sherri Shepherd  is sued by husband Lamar Sally over child support of the surrogate child she refused to claim; she loses case and has to pay child support/Her divorce to Sally is finalized/ She returns to The View on a part-time basis.




2.Ebony Magazine makes headlines and controversy by putting on the cover of a shattered picture of the cast of The Cosby Show and its cover story of Bill Cosby's alleged rape assaults. 


AND THE NO. 1 ILLI MO STORY IS










1.The Fox TV Show Empire is a ratings phenomenon starring Chicago native actor Terrence Howard when it aired in January and becomes a pop culture phenomenon drawing 17 million in its first season finale;its first season soundtrack  also hits No. 1 on Billboard Top 200




TOP 10 STL ENTERTAINMENT NEWS STORIES of 2015




10.STL  veteran radio personality Tony Scott leaves Clear Channel after 25 years and locates to Dallas station KRNB FM






9.Sinclair Broadcast  Group, owner of KDNL TV  (ABC 30) and Dish Network  agree  to restore the stations signal to the satellite provider after a 24 hour blackout. 




8.Destination America airs the first ever live exorcism at the house that inspired the 1972 movie The Exorcist 



7.St Louis Cardinals inducts new honorees in its second annual Hall of Fame . They were Ted Simmons, Bob Forsch, curt Flood and George Kissell. 







6. April Simpson

A video of a 2014 telecast of the Fox 2 News personality goes viral on social media when colleague Tim Ezell ribbed about her white and black striped sweater shirt and called her The Hamburglar (even comedian Kevin Hart chimed in on Twitter about  it)/ She is fired from Fox 2 after an intern reported her for calling him a racial nickname. 







5.Mizzou football head coach Gary Pinkel  (PICTURED ON RIGHT)steps down as head coach after 12 years after announcing he has lymphoma and after supporting the Mizzou  football players in protest against racism at the university; replaced by Barry Odom.





4.Nelly (SEE ABOVE)




3.The Gateway Arch celebrates 50 year Anniversary of its construction in October. Kiener Plaza holds an all day celebration.




2.St Louis Cardinals goes under investigation on   Houston Astros database hacking scandal (SEE ABOVE)



AND THE NO. 1 STL ENTERTAINMENT NEWS STORY IS











1.The new Riverfront Stadium  construction discussions starts by Missouri Governor Jay Nixon/ a rally for the stadium at Edward Jone Dome occurs  participated by Nixon,  Mayor Francis Slay  and co-chair of stadium development Dave Peacock / Thousands of Fans of Rams protest the possible move of the St Louis Rams at end of the year at Peabody Opera House/ Nixon meets with Rams owner Stan Kroenke in a private meeting at Rams Park about the new stadium and St Louis Rams/Board of Aldermen votes to pass the multimillion dollar deal for the new stadium construction;allegations of bribery was refuted; Slay and Board of Alderman President  Lewis  Reed votes for the financing of construction and Comptroller Darlene Green opposed/St Louis Rams plays possibly its last home game at Edward Jones Dome against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers Dec 17 (winning 31-23). This story is ongoing.



In 2015, we chronicled  each week the ILLI MOians who  made an impression with their choice of fashion choices whether it was a certain hairstyle, a certain dress, a certain suit or certain accessory (Loose Cannon Slim made one week for posing behind a luxury jeep). This year, two people made an impact with their style choices.

The first was  St Louis based event manager/promoter and Cafe Soul co-promoter  Angela Brown. She made an impression with two gowns she wore.



In April we featured Brown who  glammed up in a dark pink one shoulder  gown with silver pumps and chandelier type earrings. She was attending a gala at Starlight Theatre in Kansas City.. 

AND






In October she made one of our Fashion Hits at Delux Magazine's Power 100  at Lumiere Theatre, Here she was wearing this elegant black gown and  long chain gold earrings.



The second was STL socialite and  hospital administrator Sahar  Bahar(Curtis Smith). 

In  April  we featured him who was sporting a casual black  linen ensem with  a unique shredded ruffled top preparing to attend Kinky Boots recently at The Fox Theater in St Louis.  

AND



He made one of our Fashion Hitz lists when he wore this retro black tux with ruffled purple shirt at Delux magazine's Power 100 event at Lumiere Theater in October.



FIT BITZ 2015

This year we introduced a new segment called FIT BITZ spotlighting ILLI MOians who were physically fit whether for competition purposes or everyday lifestyles. There were two people who made an impression in this category.



The first was  Shonda Bush who made the list two times this year . She is a fitness trainer  at The Steel Company/Elite Fitness Training  in the St Louis area who  also have special boot camps for women. 


The other was  Saint Charles, Mo.  based fitness model/trainer  Jamie Brick Luckett who also made the list a couple of times who was featured on the cover and inside the 2016 OBSDN Men of Color Calendar and was featured in an isue of Apeel Magazine.  







BELOW ARE SOME OF THE ILLI MOians in arts and 

entertainment that we lost in 2015


JANUARY




STL Musician Alvin Jett (Dec 23, 2014)




ESPN Sports announcer Stuart Scott





Mr Cub Ernie Banks 





MARCH



STL jazz singer/club owner Gene Lynn


APRIL



Illinois State head coach Torrey Ward and deputy director Aaron Leether 


MAY




Chicago radio personality Ty Wansley 




STL veteran meterologist Dianne White-Clatto




STL club flowerist Jerell Dixon aka Rose Man





JUNE





STL veteran PBS TV personality/journalist Martin Duggan 





Cubs veteran Lennie Merullo





STL radio personality LaVerne Holliday 



AUGUST




STL film critic/journalist Joe Williams 




East St Louis rapper Sherraine Gee





SEPTMEBER





New York Tankees veteran Yogi Berra




STL singer Jerome Pookie Lane




NOVEMBER




STL jazz enthusiast Don Wolff




DECEMBER



STL rapper Swagg Huncho 




THAT WAS THE YEAR IN REVIEW 2015...WE WILL RETURN JAN  8. 2016 WITH A NEW POST, A NEW LOOK AND DIFFERENT CHANGES FOR THE YEAR 11 OF THE MOST INFLUENTIAL UNDERGROUND BLOG IN THE MIDWEST!


Friday, December 11, 2015

OUT 235--SPOT BITZ(DEC 11-17)

HEY OUTSTAGRS!

ITS THAT TIME!!

TIME TO GET ON STAGE!!!

This year this blog   celebrated a milestone
 this year as this blogspot will turn 10 years old!  
Its hard to believe but it has come a long way from
 small paragraphs journal entries, to a mini news 
letter to  entertainment highlighter to what it is today. 
The commemorative date was July 8., 2005 
NOTE: Starting Jan 7, 2016, OUTSTAGN will no longer chronicle entertainment news
but focus more on self promotion of projects, commentary on entertainment stories, reviews of entertainment mediums (TV shows, movies, theater, social media films, etc) and features on artists (local or nationwide). We will continue with the regular segments ARTIST SPOTLIGHT, FIT BITZ, WHO GOT STYLE, DISHN and WORDS TO THE WHYZ. Also, we wont necessarily post weekly. It could be sporadic or more regular, just depends on what is influencing in the entertainment arena. 



The special Year In Review in ILLI MO SPOT BITZ will be posted Dec 18!






ALSO  HIS FIRST SOLO CALENDAR IS READY FOR PURCHASE!
FOR INFO EMAIL TO
SNAPHONEY2011@GMAIL.COM 

To see the behind the scenes video go to 
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nAskNsKfLAU




HEY GENTS--do you have style, a great personality and a go getter when it comes to self promotion well we have the fashion contest just for you. If you would like to get a head start on your modeling career you can enter the 8th Annual Mista Couture Charity Style Contest.







The  2016 OBSDN Men of Color Calendar is set to be released  AUGUST 19. It  consists of 12 gents from across the country in  style, undergear and artistic nude collage pics. To order your copy email to snaphoney2011@gmail.com and we will  send you a Paypal invoice. $15.

TO SEE THE VIDEO DOCUMENTARY GO TO https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=roGcPp9FsJ4


\


Georgia based model/actor and "militarian" Jay Redd , who was last seen in the hit movie FURIOUS 7, has released his own calendar.  It consists of style pics, undergear, and  tasteful artistic body pics.  $15 To see behind the scenes of his calendar  videography go to 








Maatology Productions is prepping for its Los Angeles showcase of the stageplay SNAP HONEY
We are now staging for May 2016. 
The show link for updates is https://www.facebook.com/snapcasting2015?ref=bookmarks





THE TOP ILLI MO STORIES THIS WEEK ARE:

 President Barack Obama has become the first sitting president to participate in a reality show, NBC’s “Running Wild with Bear Grylls.”
The special episode featuring Obama airing Dec. 17  was filmed in early September, while POTUS was in Alaska to attend the Conference on Global Leadership in the Arctic. Grylls promises it will show “a side of the president you never have seen before” as Obama opens up to the host about his fears and family.
You all know whats next...cameos on TV shows . Can't you all see him on an episode of Empire? He was referenced on that show last season when Luscious Lyon called him. So it's just a matter of time.


FLOTUS is getting her flow to promote college education. In a new rap video powered by CollegeHumor, First Lady Michelle Obama teams with Saturday Night Live comic Jay Pharoah to kick a few rhymes in the name of higher learning.
"Southside Chicago / We all know / We had to do overtime every night to make it tomorrow," she raps. "And everyone could really make their dream true / Hey kid, listenin' in Michigan, that could be you."
According to a statement from the Office of the First Lady, the music video collaboration aims to bring awareness to Mrs. Obama's Better Make Room campaign, which launched as part of her Reach Higher campaign to celebrate students' stories. 
This is a great idea. She and her husband have breaking so many barriers in pop culture and this is just one of many. She did the Turnip Vine last year so this is right on time....we waiting to see if this will lead to a mixtape. LOL

And speaking of the Presidential Couple,in an exclusive interview with PEOPLE for a Campaign 2016 special feature in this week's magazine, Michelle reveals she can't get enough of "Uptown Funk" by Bruno Mars, while her husband says he's all about Kendrick Lamar's "How Much a Dollar Cost." 

The president also says his favorite book of 2015 is Fates and Furies by Lauren Groff, a novel that explores the key to a great marriage from two different perspectives. Topping the First Lady's book list is another portrait of a marriage, The Light of the World, Elizabeth Alexander's memoir about the sudden death of her husband. 

The following are ILLI MOians  who  and ILLI MO based projects that are nominated for various awards that were announced this week:

ON GOLDEN GLOBES

Actress in a motion picture, comedy
Melissa McCarthy, "Spy"

TV series, drama
"Empire"
Actor in a TV series, drama
Jon Hamm, "Mad Men"

Bob Odenkirk, "Better Call Saul" 

The 2016 Golden Globes will air  Jan. 10 on NBC. 


NAACP IMAGE AWARDS


ENTERTAINER OF THE YEAR
  • Misty Copeland
Outstanding Actress in a Motion Picture
  • Lauren Keke Palmer, Brotherly Love (Flavor Unit)

Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Motion Picture
  • Jennifer Hudson, Chi-Raq (Amazon Studios and Roadside Attractions)

Outstanding Independent Motion Picture
  • Chi-Raq (Amazon Studios and Roadside Attractions)


Outstanding Actor in a Comedy Series
  • Andre Braugher, Brooklyn Nine-Nine (Fox)
  • Don Cheadle, House of Lies (Showtime)

AND
  • Outstanding Directing in a Comedy Series
    • Don Cheadle, House of Lies — "The Urge to Save Humanity is Almost Always a False Front for the Urge to Rule" (Showtime)

Outstanding Drama Series
  • Empire (Fox)




Outstanding Actor in a Drama Series
  • Terrence Howard, Empire (Fox)



Outstanding Reality Program/Reality Competition Series
  • Welcome to Sweetie Pies (OWN)


Outstanding Female Artist
  • Lalah Hathaway (Hathaway Entertainment/Entertainment One)


Outstanding Duo, Group or Collaboration
  • "One Man Can Change the World" — Big Sean feat. Kanye West and John Legend (G.O.O.D. Music/Def Jam Recordings)


Outstanding Jazz Album
  • Miles Davis at Newport 1955-1975: The Bootleg Series Vol. 4, Miles Davis (Columbia/Legacy Recordings)

The NAACP Image Awards will air Feb 5 on TV One,

GRAMMY AWARDS



 BEST R&B PERFORMANCE

Planes

Jeremih Featuring J. Cole
Label: Def Jam Recordings



BEST TRADITIONAL R&B PERFORMANCE

Little Ghetto Boy

Lalah Hathaway
Label: Entertainment One/8Th Floor


 BEST RAP PERFORMANCE

All Day

Kanye West Featuring Theophilus London, Allan Kingdom & Paul McCartney
Label: Def Jam Recordings


BEST RAP/SUNG COLLABORATION

One Man Can Change The World

Big Sean Featuring Kanye West & John Legend
Track from: Dark Sky Paradise
Label: Universal/Def Jam

Glory

Common & John Legend
Label: Def Jam Recordings/ARTium Records



BEST RAP SONG

All Day

 (Kanye West Featuring Theophilus London, Allan Kingdom & Paul McCartney)


AND

Glory

(Common & John Legend)

 BEST BLUES ALBUM

Born To Play Guitar

Buddy Guy
Label: RCA Records/Silvertone Records



 BEST SONG WRITTEN FOR VISUAL MEDIA

Glory

(Common & John Legend)
Track from: Selma
Label: Def Jam Recordings/ARTium Records; Publisher(s): Paramount Pictures/Pathé Productions Limited

The Grammy Awards will air Feb 15 on CBS.




  • Jessie Williams, Actress Zendaya and Harry Belafonte share the cover together. This December/January issue unveils The Power 100 list and those activists, be they celebrities, board room executives or grassroots community organizers, 
  • that are pushing loudly for change. This begins a 70th anniversary celebration for the magazine, which includes a star-studded Black Pride-themed gala hosted by Arsenio Hall in Hollywood.





Chicago native singer and Grammy Award winner  R Kelly 
has relaesd his 13th studio album "Buffet." today.

Its the follow up to 2013’s Black Panties.

 Fans can now stream the album in its entirety for free thanks \
to good folks at Spotify

To hear snippets go to 



According to reports, The St. Louis Board of Aldermen are considering the city's share of funding for a new NFL stadium. The Ways and Means Committee voted 7 to 2 to approve the $150 million spending plan of the $1 billion project.
The 7-2 vote moves the bill to the full Board of Aldermen. The board will reportedly  debate the bill today but must reportedly call a special session for next week to vote on the plan. Even if the full board approves the bill, the city must reportedly  still secure funds for construction from the NFL and team owner.The NFL has set a deadline of December 30th for the full stadium financing proposal to be submitted.
Opponents say projected costs overruns would  reportedly add about $5 million a year in unfunded liability. 
Alderwoman Megan Green, who opposes the funding plan,  reportedly tweeted about deal cutting and bribery but did not make any specific allegations. The St. Louis Post-Dispatch reported that St Lousi Comptroller Darlene Green has been in contact with the FBI.
The league is expected to decide next month if a team will move to Los Angeles.
WOW, this is getting scandalous! Now there have been reports that Alderman Antonio French had proposed a minority amendment in the bill for talks of minority and female participation in the construction of the stadium, but that was all that was amended, nothing etched in stone. This was supposedly what got the majority of the alderpeople to vote for it. The way it looks, the bill will pass, the city taxes may or may not be risen (from Alderman Chris Carter who voted against the bill said taxes wont be raised but other means will be used), minorities may likely will be hired as flaggers during the construction to save face and the Rams will leave and a new team will be brought in before the 2016 Football Season starts . So they have eight months to get a stadium built? Thats going to be a pressure cooker.


According to stltoday.com, Nelly’s annual Black and White Ball will be moving from December to April.
Event producer Amit Dhawan of SYNERGY Productions announced this week that the new date will be April 10 at the Four Seasons Hotel in downtown St Louis. It also will be the special 10th anniversary edition of the Black and White Ball.
The event, presented by Plaza Motors and Mercy, will raise funds for Make-A-Wish Missouri.
There was no reason presented  as to why the event was moved. One could just speculate 






ST LOUIS NATIVE COMEDIAN HOT SAUCE aka BRANDON GLOVER   RETURNS TO HIS HOMETOWN TO PERFORM at  Breve Inspot Wine & Music Lounge LIVE WITH COMEDIAN WILLIE C! 

FIT BITZ


This week we feature Chicago native a fitness enthusiast and 
entrepreneur Gregory Duba  Washington  aka King Duba 




=
one 





This week we feature St Louis businesswoman/TV host/former reality
show personality Gina Cheatham. Here she is posing down at a recent
gala wearing an elegant shoulder strapped black gown with a silver buckled waistband,  and silver 
multi-strapped pumps with dangling silver earrings


















Why did Donald Trump say that Muslims need to be banned from the United States? Why did Supreme Court Justice Scalia say that black people are better off attending less challenging schools and universities" Why did Fox News's  Stacey dash and   Lt Col Ralph Peters make disparaging remarks about President Obama?  Why did Chloe Kardashian act like she made those pies when she actually bought them? Why did Kanye and Kim call their son "Saint?" Why are so many R&B artists covering Adele's song, "Hello?"  Why is dabbin a dance craze? And why are hover boards so popular? 
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IIF YOU HAVE AN ARTIST SPOTLIGHT, A FITNESS PIC  OR FASHION WITH BIO, AN EVENT YOU WANT TO HIGHLIGHT OR BLIND ITEM SEND INFO TO
SNAPHONEY2011@GMAIL.COM and we will post on a future SPOT BITZ!