In Other NYEWS: D'Angelo Dead at 51; Cardi vs Nicki; Dr. Wendy & Happy Eddie Arrested; and More!
The NYEWS provide trending stories from September to October 19th, 2025
Over the past six weeks, we’ve seen quite a few antics! I hope these columns not only inform but also offer context and insight through humor and intrigue.
Wendy Williams Finally Comes Out of Hiding!
Our period of playing Where’s Waldo: Wendy Edition has finally ended! The media personality made a rare public appearance at New York Fashion Week (NYFW), attending the Bach Mai show and LaQuan Smith’s spring 2026 ready-to-wear runway show. Williams donned a complete look by LaQuan Smith for his show, featuring a cropped black-and-white fur jacket, with a huge smile that perfectly complemented her aesthetic.
Reports say the talk show queen, who is involuntarily living in an assisted living facility, arrived at the Classic Car Club show accompanied by her bodyguard, Max Tucci, her niece Alex Finne, and Finne’s fiancé Eric Houston. The crowd was eager to see her, but the evening’s highlights were reuniting with rapper Lil’ Kim and meeting another rapper, named Ice Spice. Even though she initiated this night out, she has no intentions of returning to television in the near future (dammit!).
But in recent ‘nyews,’ a judge dismissed her ex-husband’s baseless attempt to gain control of her guardianship and claim $250 million in damages, further proving to everyone that he’s still an asshole. “He’s a money-grubber,” she swiftly told TMZ. “He’s always been that way.”
What’s up with ‘South Park’?!
As much as I enjoy laughing at an incompetent president at his own expense, I am left frustrated and burdened by the tedious waiting periods for new South Park episodes, which a handful of delays and controversies have plagued since its premiere season. However, as I was editing this column, an episode had premiered after writers admitted fault for not completing the episode on time and after the infamous – and damming – removal of Jimmy Kimmel’s show from the FCC due to conservatives getting but-hurt over Charlie Kirk comments, further demonstrating how South Park’s satire effectively illustrates current events.
Setting aside ignorance of the First Amendment, the episode in question doesn’t explicitly criticize how the Trump administration pressured ABC and affiliate owners to preempt Jimmy Kimmel Live!, although creators Trey Parker and Matt Stone clearly share their opinions. Carr appears in a subplot where Donald Trump tries to get rid of his unborn butt baby with Satan (lol), with all of Trump’s wild schemes continually backfiring on him.
Since then, the creators have been releasing new episodes at a turtle’s pace, with Season 27 ending after only five episodes. While some think it’s a glitch caused by the FCC or a deliberate, lucrative move to fulfill the creator’s contractual obligations, a show representative explained that it was actually due to a case of misreporting, as Season 27 was never planned to be a full 10 episodes. The showrunners intended for Seasons 27 and 28 to have five episodes each. What a great and ingenious way to utilize a 10-year, $3 billion deal.
Step Aside, Cardi B: Nicki Minaj IS The Drama.
Not only has Cardi B been showcasing excellent marketing and promotion for her second album, Am I The Drama?, but she also hasn’t needed to make any extra effort after its release. Enter Nicki Minaj, a veteran artist whose legacy appears to be deteriorating as she increasingly acts like a professional buffoon. This isn’t the first time I’ve had to address someone who played a role in shaping my childhood and teenage years. Still, the exhaustion of witnessing heated exchanges on social media over time has officially retired my allegiance to the “Barbs.”
As soon as Cardi B released her album, Nicki Minaj posted on social media with a date and a CD emoji, teasing an upcoming album. This follows a pattern where Nicki posts shortly after Cardi, further showing her rivalry and disdain for the rapper. The feud escalated with more insults, unnecessary mentions, and marketing efforts aimed at directing her loyal fans—or what’s left of them—to stream her recent album, Pink Friday 2. When Cardi responded and commented, Nicki fired back, and both women exchanged even harsher insults, including mentions of their children.
Although tensions seemed to ease, Cardi still sticks by her words and is waiting for Nicki’s next move, if she has one. While she waits, she continues to promote her album and takes on new brand deals.
And as for the release of Nicki Minaj’s latest album, well, it never really existed in the first place(?).
Ooohh, Lawd! Not D’Angelo!!!
Damn. Shit. Motherfucker! … is exactly what I’ve audibly exclaimed when learning that D’Angelo passed away from pancreatic cancer at the young age of 51.
An elusive yet highly influential artist of remarkable talent, he released only three albums during his lifetime: his 1995 debut Brown Sugar, 2000’s Voodoo, and 2014’s Black Messiah. His debut combined classic R&B with hip-hop influences, creating a unique sound, but in later albums, he shifted toward a more soulful and innovative style. This Grammy Award-winning eye-candy was instrumental in popularizing the neo-soul movement alongside icons like Erykah Badu and Lauryn Hill.
Soon after his passing, his family issued a statement to Variety:
“The shining star of our family has dimmed his light for us in this life […] After a prolonged and courageous battle with cancer, we are heartbroken to announce that Michael D’Angelo Archer, known to his fans around the world as D’Angelo, has been called home, departing this life today, October 14th, 2025. We are saddened that he can only leave dear memories with his family, but we are eternally grateful for the legacy of extraordinarily moving music he leaves behind. We ask that you respect our privacy during this difficult time but invite you all join us in mourning his passing while also celebrating the gift of song that he has left for the world.”
We also need to keep his children in our thoughts and prayers, especially Michael Archer II, who, in just 7 months, also lost his mother, Angie Stone, a beacon of music in her own right. He also issued his own statement:
“I am grateful for your thoughts and prayers during these very difficult times, as it has been a very rough and sad year for me. I ask that you please continue to keep me in your thoughts as it will not be easy, but one thing that both my parents taught me was to be strong, and I intend to do just that.”
Wendy Osefo, ‘I was ROOTING for you!’
Here’s a saying that resonates with Black people, especially women like myself: We work twice as hard to achieve half of what [white people] have. For generations, unlike our counterparts, we haven’t been given the privilege to fail because American society has been racially and economically disadvantaged since its inception. When we see a small percentage of Black people succeeding in fields beyond sports and entertainment, it serves as both inspiration and intrigue. And the more we motivate ourselves to reach our goals, the more endless the possibilities become. That’s why I was very disappointed to learn that Wendy Osefo, someone I’ve admired from watching The Real Housewives of Potomac (RHOP) alongside her husband, Eddie, was being indicted by a grand jury for allegedly falsely reporting a home burglary and theft, per NBC News.
Both Wendy and her husband are charged with 16 counts involving providing false or misleading information, fraud, and making false statements to an officer, according to court records. What happened was deputies were called to the couple’s Finksburg home on April 7, 2024, after a report of burglary and theft following their return from vacation. The couple claimed that jewelry, luxury goods, clothing, and shoes worth more than $200,000 had been stolen. However, during the investigation, the sheriff’s office stated that detectives found they had returned about $20,000 worth of the supposedly stolen items to the stores where they bought them. Detectives also discovered images of one of them wearing jewelry reported stolen after the burglary, which led to a search warrant being issued for the couple’s home. They were taken into custody the following Thursday.
What heightened my disappointment even further is that Wendy has distinguished herself from her castmates with her professional and academic achievements, including four degrees and a residency at a prestigious university. She even proudly bragged about her husband’s newest cannabis venture, which she helped facilitate. I hope that this indiscretion serves as a wake-up call for her to reconsider her priorities elsewhere, preferably not driven by either her husband’s or her own ignorance.