Ryan, Lisa, Sasha and Dina have a girls trip to New Orleans that tests their friendship and seals their bond.  Girls Trip is taking the box office and social media by storm. Some say it is like Hangover with Black Girl Magic sprinkled all over it. Ryan (Regina Bell) is set to give the keynote address at Essence Festival in New Orleans. She decides that it is the prime opportunity to bring back the Flossy Posse, her crew from FAMU c/o 1995. The ladies have not seen each other in five years. There's the reformed party girl Lisa (Jada Pinkett-Smith), the journalist turned gossip blogger on a budget Sasha (Queen Latifah), and the wild child who never grew up Dina ( Tiffany Haddish ). The ladies' first class trip to New Orleans takes some wild turns from the plane to the hotel to the hole in the wall club where they have a dance off that ends with the police being called. Throw in some wild rides, some old and new flames, some drank and a couple of magic tricks and y

What makes a man "husband material"?  Husband material ... It was something my college friends labeled my college boyfriend. They would say, "Girl he is husband material, you'd better hold onto him," as I looked at them dumbfounded. What made him "husband material," exactly? As a matter of fact, what is "husband material" anyway? What does that even mean? The way I figure it, being husband material requires more than great physical attributes, though those don't hurt. It means someone who can actually sustain a healthy relationship. It is more than going to church every Sunday, paying tithes and being on active duty in church ministry, though many a church girl swoons over such actions. Good decision-maker To be husband material, a man has to have a track record of making good decisions that far outnumber his bad decisions. I mean, we all make mistakes, but multiple "mistakes" are not mistakes at all, they are more

4:44 is Shawn Carter's therapeutic moment. Self-reflection and growth are heavy in his new album. His daughter was born. The image he had of himself began to fall away, being replaced by the image she had of him. Were his actions meeting her standards? Probably not. Did his decisions change the way she saw him? Probably. What's a daddy to a little girl? A superhero. Her first love. The strongest man in the world. The lens through which she sees all men. But what becomes of him in her eyes, when his actions seem more like a villain? I am a fan of storytelling and poetry. As Tupac once said (paraphrasing), Rap is merely poetry set to a beat...without the beat, the poetry would still be there... It just seems that these days, the poetry and storytelling are gone and without the beat, there would be nothing. The other day, I listened to Kill Jay-Z , on Shawn Carter's latest album: "4:44". Carter said he began writing it when he was snapped out of sleep

At what point should hoop dreams die?  Calvin Roberts is angling to make the G-League (formerly known as the D-League), NBA developmental league. Roberts is 61-years-old. From Fox News : Roberts was drafted in the 4th round, 83rd overall by San Antonio in the 1980 NBA Draft. During that summer, he spent time with the Spurs, Clippers and Hawks, but failed to crack any regular season roster. Not to date myself, but I was in diapers when Roberts was drafted and ended up playing overseas...now, I am just a couple years younger than Vince Carter, the oldest current player in the NBA. Carter recently said he's, "open"to joining the Golden State Warriors. image: Riffy NBA Basketball is like a drug. Out of all other sports, I swear basketball is the one where every player still feels like he has something left in the tank and either can make it to the league for the first time, or make it back into the league. Just the other day, I was listening to local spor