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Home , BET Hip Hop Awards, Jadakiss, Sunday Service Choir, Swizz Beatz, The Lox

ARAB TIMES, MONDAY, APRIL 26, 2021 NEWS/FEATURES 13

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‘Historic gains’ Oscar slate holds ‘fi rsts’ for Asians By Lindsey Bahr t may be hard to believe that there are still many I“firsts” left to check off after 93 years of the Acad- emy Awards, and yet this year there were a handful for Asian actors and filmmakers. Steven Yeun (“Minari”) became the fi rst Asian American actor to be nominated for best actor. Riz Ahmed (“Sound of Metal”) is the fi rst Muslim to be nominated for best actor. It’s the fi rst time that there are two best actor candidates of Asian heritage. Youn Yuh-jung (“Minari”) is the fi rst Korean woman to be nominated for any acting award. “Nomadland’s” Chloé Zhao is the fi rst Asian woman to be nominated for best director. And, with direc- tor Lee Issac Chung ’s direct- ing nomination for “Minari,” it’s also the fi rst time there are two Asian nominees in that race. The historic gains spotlight where the organization has made progress and where there is still work to do, especially Ahmed after a year in which Asian Americans were increasingly targeted in racist attacks. Nancy Yuen, author of the book “Reel Inequality: Hollywood Actors and Racism,” said the nominations this year are exciting. The actors are being recognized for roles, Yuen said, “That are not demeaning, that aren’t fi tting into stereotypes that are problematic. They are fully complex human beings.” That hasn’t always been the case for Asian actors who have broken through to the Oscars. The fi rst and DMX performs during the BET Awards in on Oct 1, 2011. The rapper was mourned at a memorial with family and close friends at the Barclays last time an Asian woman won for acting was in 1958 Center in on Saturday. The event was closed to the public due to pandemic conditions. (AP) when Japanese actor Miyoshi Umeki won for her sup- porting role in “Sayonara.” In 1985, Haing Ngor be- came the fi rst Asian man to win a supporting award for playing Cambodian journalist Dith Pran in “The Killing Fields.” And none have won in the leading cat- Memorial egory since Ben Kingsley, whose father is Indian, won for “Gandhi” in 1982. Yul Brynner, who was born in Russia, won for “The King and I” in 1957. Nominations One of hip-hop’s greatest icons It’s coupled with the fact that there have been mul- tiple Asian-led best picture winners that didn’t receive any acting nominations. In the history of best picture winners, it’s only happened 12 times, and three of DMX immortalized by family, friends them had predominately Asian casts: “The Last Em- peror,” “Slumdog Millionaire” and last year’s “ Para- NEW YORK, April 25, (AP): DMX’s while fi lming a scene for “,” a riving at the arena, where thousands of site.” Ang Lee’s “Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon” legacy was immortalized as a man be- crime drama. He said DMX became people crowded the streets. and “Life of Pi” were also nominated for best picture loved by his family, honored for his emotional knowing the rapper was Thousands of motorcycle riders sur- without a single acting nod. strong faith and respected as one of about to embark on a journey to be- rounded the monster truck, revving up “I Asian Americans and Asians in the Western hip-hop’s greatest icons at his memori- come a “hip-hop icon.” their engines. Others gathered at the diaspora tend to be seen as invisible and background. al service Saturday, with several heart- “It’s a sad day as well as a glori- arena while some of DMX’s biggest They are window dressing,” Yuen said. “It leads to felt speeches from those who knew the ous day,” said , who starred with songs from “Where The Hood At” and not recognizing Asians as fully complex actors and rapper best. DMX in the 1998 fi lm. “That was my “Ruff Ryders’ Anthem” blared from characters.” The speakers included friends Swizz brother. We did a great movie together. the crowd’s speakers. Yuen and others noticed with “Parasite,” that peo- Beatz and Nas, as well as his daughter, On that movie, he was just rising up Cynthia Roberts, a 57-year-old ple largely referred to the small ensemble as “they” who rapped in honor of her father. as a star. His fi rst didn’t even resident, said she has been rather by individual names: Chang Hyae Jin, Cho Yeo and come out yet, but he knew his journey a fan of DMX since his Ruff Ryders Jeong, Choi Woo Shik, Lee Jung Eun, Lee Sun Kyun, were among the big names who at- was starting.” days. She showed up at the arena to Park So Dam and Song Kang Ho. Whether a Western tended the two-hour ceremony at the said she was still having a hard pay homage to the rapper, saying she blind spot, a racial bias or some combination of the Barclays Center in New York. The ser- time with DMX’s death, remembering was struck by his rhymes, voice and two, it’s at least part of the reason for the systemic In this 1999, file photo, the late country vice at the Brooklyn arena was closed him as a “man, a father, a friend.” She musicianship. oversights. music legend Johnny Cash poses with to the public and restricted to close stood on stage with the Ruff Ryders “He was a true guy. He spoke his “People don’t bother to even try to learn,” Yuen his wife, the late June Carter Cash, friends and family because of the coro- collective, which helped launch the truth. He touched my soul,” said Rob- said. “That added layer of challenge, I think, makes in their Hendersonville, Tenn, home. navirus pandemic. careers of Grammy winners Eve and erts, who was sporting a DMX T-shirt. it that people in the academy aren’t even going to be The Man in Black is about to get his In a touching moment, DMX’s 15 and relaunch , She called the rapper’s music timeless. nominating someone in those fi lms unless they are al- own day in Arkansas. The Arkansas children gathered on stage to talk - and formerly signed to . “I tell myself he was put here for ready a known entity.” House on April 20, gave unanimous sometimes rap - about the star as a fa- After Eve spoke, talked that,” she continued. “We all have a Yuen, who grew up in the and also final approval to a bill that would make ther who taught them such lessons as about a time when he and DMX were job to do, and he did his job.” found herself having to look up the names on occa- Feb 26 ‘Johnny Cash Day,’ sending it “always say thank you,” “be kind to both in the same jail. He said DMX DMX, whose birth name is Earl to Gov Asa Hutchinson, who plans to everyone” and that being afraid can fetched him from his cell and then took Simmons, died April 9 after suffering a sion, said that she tried to always single out the actors sign it. (AP) if she was going to compliment “Parasite” or share a sometimes show a person how to be him to a part of the jail where he had a “catastrophic cardiac arrest.” He spent gif or an image on social media. brave. band set up along with a string of MCs. several days on life support after being “Our father is a king. Our father is rushed to a New York hospital from And the biases aren’t just relegated to the nomi- Accomplished nations. In 2016, the fi rst show after #oscarssowhite an icon,” eldest son Xavier Simmons his home April 2. became a household phrase, host Chris Rock brought said, adding that he was honored to be “DMX was the ghetto-est person Programs with images of DMX out three Asian children dressed up in suits for a now his son: “This man deepened my abil- that ever existed,” Styles P said. “What were handed out to the service’s joke about accountants and iPhones. ity to love.” he means to us is indescribable. ... He attendees ahead of the ceremony, It was not well-received at the time and provoked Tashera Simmons, DMX’s ex-wife, celebrated us and pushed us. He was which was livestreamed on the rap- a lot of immediate social media backlash from people told the audience: “Everything he did, one of the most incredible individuals, per’s YouTube channel. The four- like actor Constance Wu and basketball player Jeremy he did for you all. He always wanted to because from the beginning of his ca- page booklet had different images Lin. The academy even apologized and pledged to be please you. He always wanted to give reer to the end, he accomplished some- of the rapper, including one with his more culturally sensitive. you his best show.” thing no one has ever accomplished. arms folded with wings and another “What he wants you to do,” she He was in pain the whole way. When- photo of him standing on stage dur- Recognized said, “is love Jesus the same way he ever you (saw) him, that man was in ing a performance. The strides at the Oscars also come after over a year Lohan Welker did. Love his babies. Love his family.” pain, but he was built out of love. He The 50-year-old Grammy-nomi- of a pandemic-fueled rise in racially motivated attacks West’s Sunday Service Choir was a beast with the rhymes.” nated rapper delivered iconic hip-hop on Asian Americans. It was not lost on anyone that the kicked off the ceremony with a gospel said DMX was the “happi- songs such as “Ruff Ryders’ Anthem” day after the Oscar nominations, a white gunman was Variety performance. The hoodie sweatshirt- est he ever been in life” during the last and “ (Up in Here).” charged with killing eight people, most of whom were wearing ensemble performed a few couple years. DMX arrived on the rap scene Asian women, at Atlanta-area massage businesses. songs, including their arrangement of Before the service, a massive around the same time as Jay-Z, Ja “It was this kind of high of like, oh, my gosh, WEST PALM BEACH, Fla:The estranged “Excellent” and Soul II Soul’s “Keep black big-wheel truck with the words Rule and others who dominated the Asians are fi nally being recognized for their excel- father of actor Lindsay Lohan was ar- On Movin’.” The choir took the stage “LONG LIVE DMX” on a side of charts and emerged as platinum-sell- lence. And then there’s this horrifi c hate crime that re- rested Friday on charges that he illegally during other moments of the ceremo- the vehicle carried DMX’s shiny red ing acts. ally just shook everyone. It feels like we’re under the took kickbacks for referring patients to a ny, performing “” and casket for more than 15 miles from They were all part of rap crews, too: spotlight, but for polar opposite reasons,” Yuen said. substance abuse treatment center. Whitney ’s assisted vocals on Yonkers, New York - where the rap- DMX fronted the Ruff Ryders collec- “One doesn’t cancel out the other. The positives are Michael Lohan, 60, was booked the hymn “Jesus Loves Me.” per grew up - to the Barclays Center. tive, which had success on the charts not canceling out the racism. At the same time, I think into the Palm Beach County Jail on fi ve Nas reminisced about having a A plethora of motorcycles trailed the and on radio with its “Ryde or Die” it’s bringing awareness to the racism. And the fact counts of patient brokering and one count conversation with a teary-eyed DMX truck during the procession before ar- compilation . that Asian excellence is being recognized, the more of conspiracy to commit patient broker- voice and platform Asian Americans have to be able ing, The Palm Beach Post reported. to speak out against the hate.” Authorities said a Delray Beach-area Grammy-nominated hitmaker isn’t a public multiplatinum-selling singer, who says drug treatment center called Pride Recov- NEW YORK: An appellate court ruled for The actors themselves have complex feelings about music producer Dr. Luke on Thursday on fi gure in the eyes of the law. Dr. Luke raped her, and the producer, the moment and the “fi rsts.” ery paid more than $27,000 in kickbacks who denies it and says his onetime pro- to either Lohan directly or to a business an important legal question in his defama- The decision isn’t a fi nal judgment in Youn told Deadline that, “It’s very stressful. It’s tion suit against pop star Kesha, saying the the long-running court clash between the tege smeared him with lies. not like I’m representing the country by going to the he was associated with, Lola Recovery But Thursday’s ruling upholds a lower Ventures of Palm Beach Gardens. court’s 2020 fi nding that Kesha made a Olympics, but I feel like I’m competing for my coun- Under Florida law, it is illegal for a try.” defamatory statement about him — to health care provider to pay a commission Lady Gaga — and that she can’t defend In an interview with Variety before the nominations for the referral of patients. The practice has announcement, Yeun said: “As great as it would be it by saying that Dr. Luke is a public fi g- been linked to numerous instances of fraud ure. That matters because public fi gures to set a precedent or be part of a moment that breaks in which rehab centers get reimbursed for through a ceiling, I personally don’t want to be en- have to meet a higher legal standard than performing costly and unnecessary tests on everyday people do in order to prove snared by that moment, either.” patients who have health insurance. (AP) they’ve been defamed. (AP) As for Ahmed, speaking to The New York Times ❑ ❑ ❑ ❑ ❑ ❑ on the morning of his nomination, he said, “What’s most important is if it’s meaningful to other people. NEW YORK: NBC News’ Kristen Welker, LONDON: Les McKeown, the former lead I just think the more and more people that can fi nd shortly before she expects the birth of a singer of the 1970s Scottish pop sensation themselves celebrated and included in these moments, daughter through a surrogate, is revealing Bay City Rollers, has died suddenly at the the better.” the struggles with infertility that she and her age of 65, his family said Thursday. Part of the reason for the gains could be due to husband, John Hughes, have gone through. A statement from his family posted on diversifi cation efforts within the Academy’s mem- Welker, NBC’s chief White House social media said: “It is with profound bership ranks. After the 2015 and 2016 #oscarssow- correspondent and the moderator of last sadness that we announce the death of hite spotlight, the organization vowed to double the fall’s fi nal presidential debate between our beloved husband and father Leslie number of women and people of color in its voting Joe Biden and Donald Trump, said Richard McKeown.” The Scottish on the “Today” show Friday that their singer died at home on Tuesday, it added. body by 2020. They hit that milestone last summer, daughter is expected in June. but the organization is still 81% white and 67% male. Formed at the end of the 1960s, the She shared a copy of a letter she’s Bay City Rollers enjoyed huge success In 2024, they’ll introduce new inclusion standards for written to her unborn daughter, saying “I best picture hopefuls. in Britain and abroad with their tartan cannot wait until the moment I hold you outfi ts and pop tunes like “Bye Bye “Historically there were pockets of the academy for the very fi rst time — it is all I have that were more diverse, particularly internationally, Baby,” “Shang-a-Lang” and “Give a dreamed about for years.” Machine Gun Kelly performs at Wrigley Field in Chicago, in this Sept 8, 2018, Little Love.” They had a fanatical teen specifically the directors branch,” said Turner Clas- The letter described lengthy fertility file photo. Grammy Award nominated rock & soul duo Black Pumas and Cleve- following and sold more than 100 mil- sic Movies host and Oscars expert Dave Karger. treatments and the day a doctor told them land’s own Machine Gun Kelly will perform at this week’s NFL draft. The league lion records. Some in the British media (AP) they would need a surrogate. (AP) announced its musical acts for the second and third days of the draft, which is back called them the “biggest group since the ❑ ❑ ❑ on the road after being all virtual last year due to the COVID-19 pandemic. (AP) Beatles”. (AP)