Daughter Beyoncé and Grandkids Perform Theme for Tina Lawson's Upcoming Facebook Watch Show

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Today the original Beyoncé announced she is launching a talk show on Facebook Watch with a little help from her grandkids and one of her Grammy-winning daughters.

Celestine Beyoncé Knowles-Lawson (nee Beyoncé), mother of mononymous music stars Beyoncé and Solange, posted a tease for the new show “Talks With Mama Tina” on Instagram.

The clip begins with her grandchildren — Solange's son, Julez, 17, and Beyoncé's children, Blue Ivy, 9, and twins Sir and Rumi, 4 — saying, "Let's talk about it, Grandma!" Then segues into a classic Beyoncé harmony with stacks inviting viewers to watch the show about “simple conversations with no limitations.”

Knowles-Lawson — a successful entrepreneur known for establishing the fashion brands House of Deréon and Miss Tina by Tina Knowles — captioned the post:

I'm so excited to announce the launch of my new @wetheculture @Facebookwatch show ‘Talks With Mama Tina,' where I've invited some of my favorite people over to my home and have a talk with me," Tina captioned an Instagram video of the show's trailer. "I loved filming this show and sitting down with so many amazing people because we got to have such honest heartfelt conversations and I got to make them my famous GUMBO! Be sure to tune in starting on THIS Wednesday 12/23 at 5 pm PCT to view.

She added, "Thank you to my baby @beyonce and my beautiful grand babies for making this special theme song for the show," she added. "Are you guys ready to watch?"

With an upcoming guest list that includes superstars like Kevin Hart, Zendaya, John David Washington, Tiffany Haddish Chloe Bailey, Halle Bailey, Kelly Rowland, Ciara and more the show may soon become the talk of the town.

Watch the teaser for the show below:

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Legendary Rapper Kangol Kid Loses Battle With Colon Cancer

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Hip-hop and branding pioneer Kangol Kid is dead at 55 following a short battle with colon cancer.

A statement released by his family said Kid, who was diagnosed with cancer in February, died peacefully around 3 a.m. Saturday at a hospital in Manhasset, New York.

It was an inauspicious end for the Brooklyn-bred artist, born Shaun Shiller Fequiere, who had been honored by the American Cancer Society in 2012 for his fund-raising efforts. He was co-founder of the Mama Luke Foundation.

The charity for promoting breast cancer awareness was named in honor of Gay Frances Lucas, the
mother of his manager, who passed away from the disease in 2010.

“I watched her deteriorate,” said Kid, who at the time had never had cancer effect someone close to him before, of his reason for starting the foundation. “So, I took on the fight and said alright, there’s no reason anyone else should have to go through what she went through. I reached out to my friends, my hip-hop family … we became the top fundraising team for the American Cancer Society.”

The relationships he called on to fight cancer were built during a groundbreaking career. After starting his career as a B-boy, or breakdancer, at points touring with early rap powerhouses Whodini and Full Force, he took to the mic as one-fourth of the legendary group UTFO.

Formed in Brooklyn and comprised of Kid — whose non-de-plume derived from a neighborhood nickname acquired because of the many Kangol hats he owned — his former breakdancing partner Doctor Ice, the Educated Rapper and D.J. Mix Master Ice, the group, also known as the Untouchable Force Organization, released a string of hits in the 1980s.

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Chief among them was the now-iconic "Roxanne, Roxanne.” The 1984 single only reached No. 10 on the Billboard R&B singles chart, but its influence on the genre has been lasting and deep.

Its release spawned imitators, scores of answer-tracks, and was the launching point for the careers of two of hip-hop's early female stars: Roxanne Shante and The Real Roxanne.

UTFO released five albums and continued to innovate, becoming the first rap group to perform at the Apollo Theater in 1985 and collaborating with heavy-metal band Anthrax in 1987.

Following the group's success, Kid wrote a music-industry advice column, first for Black Beat magazine and then for AllHiphop.com, and continued to write and produce for other artists. His relationship with Kangol hats, who ended up sponsoring him, remained strong his entire life with the company granting him free product. One of his newsboy-style Kangol hats is included in the collection of the Smithsonian's National Museum of African American History and Culture.

Leonard 'Hub' Hubbard, Co-Founder and Original Bassist of The Roots, Dies at 62

 

Fourteen years after departing the group in 2007 due to a multiple myeloma (a type of blood cancer) diagnosis, Leonard Hubbard, a founding member of the Grammy-winning hip-hop group The Roots, has lost his battle with the disease.

Hubbard, better known by his sobriquet “Hub,” died at the age of 62 Thursday. His wife Stephanie told Philadelphia’s ABC 6 that after being in remission until last month, Hubbard’s health took a drastic turn Wednesday night.

Hubbard found himself immobile after being energetic the days before. Stephanie dropped him off for treatment at Lankenau Hospital but could not stay with him due to Covid restrictions. She was informed of his passing the next day.

"I was called to the hospital. They told me what had happened that he had passed. I went to the hospital and was able to sit with him," she told ABC 6, noting that her husband, who had decided to focus on his work as a composer after he left the group, had just finished a major project titled “The Awakening” the previous week.

"He wanted to be known for the type of music he was composing," she said. "And before he died, he was sitting there at night listening to the music, and he was so happy with it,” Stephanie said. “When you hear his project, you'll see he was so much more than what people know.”

Following the news The Root’s Twitter account posted a tribute to Hubbard, who along with Tariq "Black Thought" Trotter, Ahmir "Questlove" Thompson and Malik “Malik B.” Abdul Basit were the original lineup for the seminal hip-hop group.

"It's with the heaviest of hearts that we say goodbye to our brother Leonard Nelson Hubbard," the post read. "May your transition bring peace to your family to your friends to your fans and all of those who loved you. Rest in Melody Hub."

It’s with the heaviest of hearts that we say goodbye to our brother Leonard Nelson Hubbard.
May your transition bring peace to your family to your friends to your fans and all of those who loved you.

Rest in Melody Hub pic.twitter.com/2dknTLDNLh

— The Roots (@theroots) December 17, 2021

Hubbard’s tenure with the group began in 1992 and lasted 15 years. His bass guitar anchored the signature sound of the band. He played on all their releases during this time including the classics “Things Fall Apart” and “The Tipping Point.”

This is the second death of a founding member of The Roots. Malik B. died in July 2020; a cause of death was not released.