Rapper LL Cool J says he will not perform at a Fourth of July festival in Philadelphia in support of a strike by nearly 10,000 city workers in Philadelphia.

If Sean “Diddy” Combs had a choice, the self-proclaimed serial entrepreneur would be hunkered down in a recording studio rather than running his many successful businesses.

John Legend may have multiple Grammys and achieved the rare EGOT status, but the prolific singer still feels the need to prove himself.

This week’s new entertainment releases include fresh music from John Legend and Kane Brown, Samantha Morton stars as the 16th-century queen Catherine de Medici in an edgy Starz series and a race between two upcoming “Pinocchio” films begins with Robert Zemeckis’ adaptation.

Black culture, in all its glory, will be on display over the 4th of July holiday weekend in New Orleans as thousands converge for the in-person return of the Essence Festival of Culture.

Sean “Diddy” Combs spoke about his own dream like the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. while accepting the highest honor at the BET Awards.

Doja Cat could make the BET Awards her world later this month.

When faced with too many choices, what's a Grammy voter to do.

Janet Jackson, Kevin Hart and Nicki Minaj are among the headliners announced for this summer’s Essence Festival of Culture.

Jennifer Hudson was named entertainer of the year at the 53rd annual NAACP Image Awards that highlighted works by entertainers and writers of color.

The Super Bowl will include a spectacular halftime show, as usual.

Netflix could be a dominant force at next month’s 53rd NAACP Image Awards.

Cardi B’s “WAP” had new meaning at the BET Awards: winning and pregnant.

FILE - In this Jan. 12, 2020, file photo, Eddie Murphy accepts the lifetime achievement award at the 25th annual Critics' Choice Awards in Santa Monica, Calif. Murphy will be inducted into the NAACP Image Awards Hall of Fame this month. The NAACP announced Thursday, March 11, 2021, that Murphy will be inducted during the March 27 ceremony, which will air on CBS. (AP Photo/Chris Pizzello, File)LOS ANGELES – Eddie Murphy was inducted into the NAACP Image Awards Hall of Fame at the organization’s show that highlighted works by entertainers and athletes of color. I’m very moved.”Murphy went on to send a message to Hall about his famous red leather suit from his 1983 stand-up special “Delirious.”“My red suit was not that tight Arsenio,” Murphy said. “I get a lot of cracks about that red suit.

FILE - In this Jan. 12, 2020, file photo, Eddie Murphy accepts the lifetime achievement award at the 25th annual Critics' Choice Awards in Santa Monica, Calif. Murphy will be inducted into the NAACP Image Awards Hall of Fame this month. The NAACP announced Thursday, March 11, 2021, that Murphy will be inducted during the March 27 ceremony, which will air on CBS. (AP Photo/Chris Pizzello, File)LOS ANGELES – Eddie Murphy will be inducted into the NAACP Image Awards Hall of Fame this month. The NAACP announced Thursday that Murphy will be inducted during the March 27 ceremony, which will air on CBS. The NAACP Image Awards honoring entertainers and writers of color will also simulcast on BET, MTV, VH1, MTV2, BET HER and LOGO.

The captivating pre-game experience featured performers from award-winning singers and inaugural poet Amanda Gorman. Alicia Keys performed “Lift Every Voice and Sing,” which is widely recognized as the Black national anthem. Alicia Keys ‘Lift Every Voice and Sing.’ Both teams lined up in endzones #SBLV pic.twitter.com/WMgUVwOv4X — Grace Remington (@GraceRemiWTSP) February 7, 2021Singer H.E.R. gave a beautiful rendition of, “America the Beautiful.”Jazmine Sullivan and Eric Church sang the national anthem. Youth poet laureate Amanda Gorman recited the poem, “Chorus of the Captians,” which honored James Martin, Trimaine Davis, Suzie Dorner and community heroes everywhere.

Gorman, the 22-year-old poet who stirred America at the inauguration of President Joseph Biden, again commanded the spotlight on one of the countrys biggest stages, the Super Bowl. That Gorman brought poetry to the Super Bowl was an almost unthinkable collision of grace and glitz. She seemed to grasp the unlikeliness of her pre-game reading, the first in Super Bowl history. “Poetry at the Super Bowl is a feat for art and our country, because it means we’re thinking imaginatively about human connection even when we feel siloed,” Gorman said Sunday on Twitter. Here’s to them, to poetry and to a Super Bowl like no other.”

This combination photo shows singer Jazmine Sullivan in Rydal, Pa., on Jan. 26, 2021, left, and singer Whitney Houston at the BET Honors in Washington on Jan. 17, 2009. Sullivan and Eric Church will perform the national anthem at Sunday's Super Bowl. Houston has arguably the best performance of The Star-Spangled Banner" at a Super Bowl game. One of Sullivan's idols, Whitney Houston, has arguably the best performance of “The Star-Spangled Banner" at a Super Bowl game. I was blown away, in my feelings, everything, at the fact that she even knew me and stood up and was giving me love in that way," Sullivan continued.

Sullivan and Church will join forces to sing the national anthem at the next months Super Bowl, where Grammy-winning singer H.E.R. will perform America the Beautiful. (Photo by Chris Pizzello/Invision/AP, File)NEW YORK – R&B star Jazmine Sullivan and country singer Eric Church will join forces to sing the national anthem at the next month’s Super Bowl, where Grammy-winning singer H.E.R. will perform “America the Beautiful.”The performances will take place Feb. 7 at the Raymond James Stadium in Tampa before the big game and halftime show starring The Weeknd. She’s won honors at the MTV Video Music Awards, BET Awards and Soul Train Music Awards and launched R&B hits such as “Focus,” “Best Part,” “Slide,” “Damage” and “B.S.” with Jhené Aiko.