Ricky Martin & Jwan Yosef announce birth of their new daughter, Lucia
Pop superstar Ricky Martin and husband Jwan Yosef have announced the birth of their baby daughter, Lucia Martin-Yosef.
Martin already has two sons, Valentino and Matteo, who are about 10-years-old.
Martin and Yosef, who married in January of 2018, both shared identical posts on their respective Instagrams.
“We are beyond happy to announce that we have become parents to a beautiful and healthy baby girl, Lucia Martin-Yosef,” wrote Martin. “It has been a special time for us and we cant wait to see where this stellar baby will take us. Both her beautiful brothers and me and Jwan have fallen in love with Lucia.”
Madonna prepares to surprise the NYE crowd at the iconic Stonewall Inn in NYC
Madonna surprised the crowd last night with a midnight appearance at the iconic Stonewall Inn in New York City.
Madge was recently named a ‘Stonewall Ambassador’ by Pride Live to help bring awareness to this year’s 50th anniversary of the Stonewall uprising on June 28, 2019. In honor of the anniversary, World Pride is being held in New York City this year.
Appearing onstage in an appropriate melange of leather, chains and glitter, the Queen of Pop noted, “This is the smallest stage I’ve ever been on.”
She then went on to address the diverse crowd about the memory and revolution of Stonewall (via Boy Culture):
“I see you! I stand here, proudly, at the place where Pride began, the legendary Stonewall Inn, and the birth of a new year.
“We come together tonight to celebrate 50 years of revolution. Fifty years of freedom-fighting. Fifty years of blood, sweat and tears — can I get an amen?! Fifty years of sacrifice. Fifty years of standing up to discrimination, hatred and — worst of all — indifference.
“And it all started here, at Stonewall. Let us never forget the Stonewall Riots and those who bravely stood up and said, Enough. Enough brutality, enough violence inflicted on this community, enough stigmatism, enough oppression, enough pain and suffering.
“We must never forget where we came from.”
Madonna then launched into an acoustic version of her mega-hit “Like A Prayer.” That was followed by a duet of the Elvis classic, “Can’t Help Falling in Love,” with her son, David, on guitar.
What? You thought I wasn’t going to count down and recap the year that was 2018?
Fat chance.
Here’s my take on the best that the year had to offer in terms of LGBTQ music, movies, television and pop culture moments, as well as the stories that resonated most with my readers.
Please kick back, pour a cocktail, and take a little journey on the way back machine as I review 2018 in terms of the LGBTQ community.
And, as always, I would muchly appreciate it if you would share The Randy Report podcast with your friends.
So, here we go. Let me know in the comments what you thought I might have missed.
See you all in 2019! Thanks to all of you for visiting The Randy Report. It totally wouldn’t be any fun without you here.
• If you’re an Instagrammer, click here to get your #2018BestNine. Here’s mine and I’d pretty much agree. Tons of fun with hot hubby Michael, some Rome, some Mexico, some time alone. And meeting the luminous Angela Bassett was the fan-boy moment of the year 😉
• In an interview with The LA Times, outgoing White House Chief of Staff John Kelly says inside the West Wing, Donald Trump’s infamous ‘wall’ will not be a ‘wall.’ The idea of a solid concrete wall went out the window over a year ago, according to Kelly.
• The US stock market has officially logged its worse year since 2008 when the Great Recession began. The Dow Jones Industrial Average ends the year down 5.6%, and the S&P 500 lost 6.2%. #SoMuchWinning
As 2018 heads off into the sunset, looming on the horizon are those New Years resolutions we all make in an attempt to better ourselves in the next 365 days.
Get back to the gym, drink less, work harder, be a better person – all worthy aspirations.
But out Olympian (and self-proclaimed ‘America’s Sweetheart’) Adam Rippon has other ideas.
Rippon tweeted over the weekend that one of his New Years resolutions is to “give off more BDE.”
One of my New Years resolutions is to give off more BDE and also more HGE (horse girl energy)
BDE became a social media ‘thing’ in the aftermath of CNN personality Anthony Bourdain’s passing when Toronto-based screenwriter & freelance journalist Grant Kyrell tweeted the phrase in honor of the deceased Bourdain.
we’re talking about how anthony bourdain had big dick energy which is what he would have wanted
Over 7K ‘likes’ and hundreds of retweets led to the phrase becoming uber-popular.
So popular, in fact, that Kyrell later lamented to The Guardian that he made nothing from coining the buzz phrase.
Next thing you know, folks were talking about SNL’s Pete Davidson’s BDE after then-fiancé Ariana Grande spilled the news in a tweet (since deleted) about the size of his massive junk.
Pete davidson is 6’3 with dark circles, exudes big dick energy, looks evil but apparently is an angel, and loves his girl publicly the only thing wrong w him is that he’s a scorpio but anyway…..id married him within a month too
Writing for The Cut, Allison P. Davis describes BDE as “a quiet confidence and ease with oneself that comes from knowing you have an enormous penis and you know what to do with it.”
“It’s not cockiness, it’s not a power trip — it’s the opposite: a healthy, satisfied, low-key way you feel yourself,” she adds.
Davis also notes that BDE does not necessarily require a large wang. “What we’re talking about is really more of an aura, a vibe,” writes Davis.
For instance, hottie Chris Evans tops list after list of men with BDE as do Will & Grace alum Bobby Cannavale and movie star Idris Elba.
And it’s worth noting you don’t even have be a guy to swing some BDE. Rihanna has it, as does Academy Award winner Cate Blanchett.
Let’s face it – BDE rocks.
And it’s the total antithesis of toxic masculinity, which we totally don’t need any more of in the world.
You know – guys like Donald Trump who project what they think is ‘strong’ or ‘masculine’ when they’re just trying to pretend they have BDE.
But they don’t.
We definitely see Adam owning his BDE. Especially when he’s on the ice doing what he does so well.
Even though Adam’s retired from competitive skating, he’s still sharing those hard-earned skills with his fans. Check out this clip Adam posted on his Instagram filmed in conjunction with On Ice Perspectives.
Skating to Lady Gaga’s “Shallow,” Adam shows how he already wears his BDE effortlessly.
Even though same-sex marriage has been legal in Brazil since 2013, LGBTQ couples are hurrying their wedding plans before right-wing politician Jair Bolsonaro is sworn into office as the country’s new president.
Bolsonaro, often referred to as the “Donald Trump of the Tropics,” has been virulently anti-LGBTQ his entire career and campaigned on a promise to defend “the true meaning of matrimony as a union between man and woman.”
Bolsonaro’s campaign already seems to have begun to influence public opinion and actions.
Comparing 2017 to 2016, anti-LGBTQ murders are up 30% (387 in 2017 vs. 327 in 2016) according to local LGBTQ advocacy group Grupo Gay de Bahia.
And openly lesbian city councillor Marielle Franco of Rio de Janeiro was murdered in March of this year.
All of this and Bolsonaro’s impending presidency has led to a 66% spike in same-sex weddings in November according to The New York Times.
In Brazil’s largest city, São Paulo, 57 same-sex weddings were celebrated during the first ten days of December compared to 113 in all of December 2017.
Aline Foguel set a date for her wedding to her girlfriend Carolina Zannata right after Bolsonaro’s landslide victory. She, like many in the LGBTQ community, worries that the new far-right president’s ascension will give permission to homophobes to openly air their hateful, divisive rhetoric, possibly leading to violence.
“People now have this open homophobic discourse that they were too embarrassed to say before,” Ms. Foguel told the Times. “I’m so afraid of reliving a past that I thought we had already conquered. I’ve had panic attacks.”
The Brazilian Bar Association’s head of sexual diversity, Maria Berenice Dias, urged same-sex couples “who want to get married to hurry up and formalize their union before the end of the year.”
And it’s not just marriage equality Brazilian LGBTQs are concerned about.
Noah Beltramini, a transgender man, not only rushed to marry but also to officially change his name and gender identification after a Supreme Court ruling earlier this year allowed.
“It wasn’t something I was worried about before,” said Beltramini. “But with Bolsonaro I feel completely vulnerable.”
According to The Washington Post, Democrats plan to pass a stopgap spending bill that would fund the Department of Homeland Security through February 8.
The Homeland Security bill will match the one passed by the Republican-controlled Senate before Christmas which includes $1.3 billion for border fencing and other security measures.
Six other funding bills are also in the pipeline to fund closed portions of the federal government through September 30.
It looks like Donald Trump got the memo. The Trumpster launched into another Twitter rant on the subject this morning.
He keeps saying Democrats should get back to Washington, but technically Paul Ryan is still the Speaker of the House.
Just saying…
I campaigned on Border Security, which you cannot have without a strong and powerful Wall. Our Southern Border has long been an “Open Wound,” where drugs, criminals (including human traffickers) and illegals would pour into our Country. Dems should get back here an fix now!
I’m in the Oval Office. Democrats, come back from vacation now and give us the votes necessary for Border Security, including the Wall. You voted yes in 2006 and 2013. One more yes, but with me in office, I’ll get it built, and Fast!
It’s incredible how Democrats can all use their ridiculous sound bite and say that a Wall doesn’t work. It does, and properly built, almost 100%! They say it’s old technology – but so is the wheel. They now say it is immoral- but it is far more immoral for people to be dying!
By the way, that part about being “in the Oval Office?” Looks like it was another lie. White House reporter Brian Karem noted that there’s no Marine standing guard outside the Oval Office which is normal protocol when the president is in the West Wing.
Sen. Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts (image via Twitter)
Massachusetts Sen. Elizabeth Warren announced today she is establishing an exploratory committee in advance of a presidential run in 2020.
You’ll note the multiple shots of pride events and LGBTQ folks in the announcement video below.
Every person in America should be able to work hard, play by the same set of rules, & take care of themselves & the people they love. That’s what I’m fighting for, & that’s why I’m launching an exploratory committee for president. I need you with me: https://t.co/BNl2I1m8OXpic.twitter.com/uXXtp94EvY
I’ll announce a decision early in the new year, but here’s one thing I know: I can’t do this alone. This has always been a grassroots campaign, powered by 1.8m grassroots donations all across the country. This isn’t my fight, it’s our fight. Join us now: https://t.co/BNl2I1m8OX
Three Democratic candidates have entered the 2020 fray—Julián Castro, Elizabeth Warren and Maryland’s John Delaney. Election Day is 673 days away.— Richard Escobedo (@RichardEscobedo) December 31, 2018
Our reporting is that the announcement timing is not only about raising money, but staffing. In what figures to be a crowded field, announcing early allows formal job offers to ramp up infrastructure in key states. https://t.co/UQ3FZzYE6zhttps://t.co/tZa0jkm7gk— Steadman (@AsteadWesley) December 31, 2018
Let’s support EVERY Democrat who says they want to run and then make the final decision within the party by voting in our primaries. Then we support the Dem who gets the nomination all the way, even if we don’t agree 100% with everything they say or do. https://t.co/TL2IFiZdIL— Scott Nevins (@ScottNevins) December 31, 2018
I’ve never personally connected with Warren on a visceral level. That said, I do like much of what she says and I’m happy to listen.
Bottom line is: I will be voting for the Democratic candidate in 2020 because Trump will not get my vote.
Louis CK returns to the comedy stage (image via WikiMedia)
Just when you thought Kevin Spacey’s bizarre YouTube video was the worst re-emergence of the year, Louis C.K. shows up with a ‘hold my beer’ moment.
After multiple allegations of sexual misconduct forced him from the public eye in November 2017 – his FX network series was cancelled and the release of his feature film I Love You Daddy was axed – the comic told the world he was going to chill for bit.
“These stories are true,” he wrote in his apology. “When you have power over another person, asking them to look at your dick isn’t a question. It’s a predicament for them. The power I had over these women is that they admired me. And I wielded that power irresponsibly.”
‘I have spent my long and lucky career talking and saying anything I want,” Louis C.K. said at the time. “I will now step back and take a long time to listen.”
Well, he’s not listening any longer.
In a new comedy set (which leaked this weekend), the 51-year-old came out swinging at a whole host of targets.
Complaining about young people today, he riffed on folks who use gender neutral pronouns.
“They’re like royalty!” he said. “They tell you what to call them. ‘You should address me as they/them, because I identify as gender-neutral.’ Oh, Ok. You should address me as ‘there’ because I identify as a location. And the location is your mother’s cunt.”
He also trained his ire on the survivors of the Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida where seventeen teens and adults were killed on February 14.
“They testify in front of Congress, these kids? What are they doing?,” says the comic in the leaked video.
“You’re young, you should be crazy, you should be unhinged, not in a suit… you’re not interesting. Because you went to a high school where kids got shot? Why does that mean I have to listen to you? You didn’t got shot, you pushed some fat kid in the way, and now I’ve gotta listen to you talking?”
Imagine thinking the best way to resurrect your career after admitting to sexual misconduct is to mock trans people and Parkland gun violence survivors. pic.twitter.com/SH7wDYe7kA
Listening to the audio, it’s hard to tell which is worse: Louis C.K. doing transphobic jokes and mocking school shooting survivors or the people laughing uproariously at the routine.
The Twitterverse wasn’t having it:
This hacky, unfunny, shallow routine is just a symptom of how people are afraid to feel empathy. It’s much easier to laugh at our most vulnerable than to look at their pain directly & show them love and concern. Louis CK is all fear and bitterness now. He can’t look inward. https://t.co/aQVG0rk87y
Louis CK is a sexual predator who mocks school shooting survivors, delegitimizes trans people, and could not work the rest of his life without ever worrying about money while the women he harassed gain nothing, but please tell me more about how MeToo destroys men’s lives.
The thing is, you can still consensually fingerbang folks, do Jell-o shots, and manage not be a transphobic, misogynist hack comic. Louis CK’s just an asshole.
#LouisCK’s new set apparently has a section attacking #nonbinary people. He thinks it’s wrong to use “they” as a singular pronoun. I, on the other hand, think it’s wrong to sexually assault people.
But this Twitter user summed it up best perhaps: “I actually don’t need to hear audio of Louis CK making fun of the Parkland survivors and trans people. It’s about to be a new year. I think I’ll leave Louis CK behind in 2018 and that’s where he can stay forever.”
I actually don’t need to hear audio of Louis CK making fun of the Parkland survivors and trans people. It’s about to be a new year. I think I’ll leave Louis CK behind in 2018 and that’s where he can stay forever.
From a personal essay by Lauren Hough for HuffPost chronicling the kinds of folks she encountered over ten years on the job doing TV cable repair.
Here’s just one episode:
The one that comes to mind now is the anti-gay lobbyist whose office was lined with framed appreciation from Focus on the Family, and pictures with Pat Buchanan and Jerry Falwell, but whose son’s room was painted pink and littered with Barbies.
The hypocrite’s son said he was still a boy. He just thought his sundress was really cute. I agreed, told him I love daisies, and he beamed.
His father thanked me, and I wanted to tell him to go fuck himself. How the fuck do you actively work to ensure the world’s a more dangerous place for your beautiful little kid?
But I didn’t ask him that. I just stood and glared at him until he looked away. I needed the job.
I assumed his kid would grow up to hate him.
Hough also notes, through her adventures, that conservatives tended to treat her like a servant, while blue collar and sex worker customers were more polite and likely to tip after she would complete repairs.
She also shares a story about the wife of a Fox News junkie who insisted on calling her “Larry,” mistaking her for a man since she is actually a six foot tall military veteran who’s also a lesbian.
After telling the Foxer it would be 7-10 days to get his cable TV back up to speed, the wife (who had spent the entire visit cleaning the already clean kitchen counter) came out to Hough’s van to apologize for her husband.
I said, “It’s fine.” I said there really wasn’t anything I could do. She blinked back the flood of tears she’d been holding since God knows when. She said, “It’s just, when he has Fox, he has Obama to hate. If he doesn’t have that …” She kept looking over her shoulder. She was terrified of him. “I’m sorry,” she said. “I just need him to have Fox.” I got out of my van.
Hough eventually finds herself assigned to doing repairs at former Vice President Dick Cheney’s home.
