Scott Disick reportedly tried to play hardball with E! to have his son Mason appear in “Kourtney and Kim Take New York”. He wanted $5,000 per episode, while E! was only willing to pay $1,000 per show. Disick pressed and E! threw up the deuces, so now you won’t be seeing Mason at all. Can we all just agree that Disick got into the creepy line twice?

Anyimjustridingthistrainuntilitstops, this story got me thinking about the strangeness about Stage Husbands.

Let’s review Exhibits A, B & C:

Kendu Issacs

What is it you do again? That’s right you sat in the studio with the crew were a record “producer” when you linked up with Murrry, but what have you done lately besides wrestle with Ms. Blige in the club and take her Madison Square Garden tickets? On top of that, something about your eyes is mad scurry to me! Plus, I like the heartbroken, visible panty lines Mary. Better music. Sorry! Next…

Stephen Belafonte

This movie “producer” has a soap opera sounding name and mad sketchy past. Something about you screams former Amway/pre-paid legal/cricket salesperson, you pretty muthaf#cka (spoken in my Wesley Snipes voice)!

Todd Russaw

Faith needs “One More Chance” after being with you. Beside getting busted for riding dirty and adding to her potpourri of offspring. What is it that you do again? Oh, your a producer too? You know Kendu?

Random observation fellas: throwing “producer” after your name don’t make it right! Now I truly hope these marriages last, Lord knows we need some examples of good relationships, but I can’t help but think about Anita Baker. Her ex, the O.G. of stage husbands, is fighting for HALF of her royalties… all because she got caught up in the rapture! If the roles were revered the woman would be called a gold digger. #justsayin

Twitter tried to kill Aretha Franklin last night. Bastards! – Socialite Life

Foxy Brown blames the devil for delaying her Lil Kim diss track. I don’t think White Jesus approves of this – The Jasmine Brand

Kelsey Grammer’s Real Housewives of Beverly Hills wife is about to get HALF – Media Outrage

Lenny Kravitz says Teena Marie changed his life – The Urban Daily

Hugh Hefner’s engaged and somebody’s pissed about it – Tabloid Prodigy

Man kills wife during sex fantasy. Talk about a sex shooter – Be Stylistik

Did Talib Kweli and his wife get “domestic” in a club? Time for some damage control – Karen Civil

Reese Witherspoon is getting married…again – Starzlife

Do Kelly Osbourne dirty and she’ll put your arse on blast – Bitch Pleaz

Don’t forget to check out our fellow bloggers under the Brewshyt tab…there’s always good stuff there too!

Image via AP
Want more Witches’ Brew?
Like us | Follow us | Get fed

When you go innnnn on a celebrity on Twitter, be prepared for said celeb to return the favor. That’s what one Roots fan found out today.

The weekend storm delayed The Roots from getting to their Washington, DC show on time last night. One pissed off fan tweeted about her pissed-off-edness that she had to pack up and leave the show early:

I'm pissed at @questlove and @tariqtrotter for pulling a lauryn hill last night. I had to leave and can't get my $ back or go tonight.

12/28/2010 1:39 pm via Twitter for BlackBerry®ReplyRetweetFavorite

@catirah

Catirah Vicious

You mad, boo?

Anyway, she got one helluva response from Roots drummer Questlove who retweeted her comment and then went on a tirade:

RT: catirah "I'm pissed at @questlove and the @tariqtrotter for pulling a lauryn hill last night. I had to leave (cont) http://tl.gd/7p7et2

12/28/2010 3:16 pm via TwitLonger BetaReplyRetweetFavorite

@questlove

Questo of The Roots

pulling a lauryn hill.

let’s examine that:

lauryn hill like shoveling myself out of a foot (tariq had 3 feet) of snow?

lauryn hill like tourbus breaking down mid trek?

or lauryn hill like waiting at amtrak for 3 hours?

or lauryn hill like exhausting EVERY outlet until all 8 Roots had to troop down 95 flintstone bald foot style and independent of each other?

lauryn hill like me taking one for the team and djing from 7pm for 3 and a half hours because i knew that people would be on their feet for 4 hours BEFORE the show started?

lauryn hill like me on a consistent basis TWEETING that due to a horrible snow storm that we been trying to escape since 12pm (philly is just under 2 hours from dc, which should explain alot) that the show would be delayed?

lauryn hill like me announcing every 30 mins the status of the missing roots members struggling to get to the venue?

lauryn hill like us putting on a 2+ hour show despite the fact we had spent the last 13 hours in hell without shower/rest/food/energy trying to get to a show any other person woulda cancelled?

lauryn hill is your term for me and tariq being inconsiderate assholes because an act of god prevented us from being onstage when we should have been.

well in front of the whole twitter community. let me be the first to apologize for letting you down. next time i promise to walk on the amtrak tracks should we be put in that position.

matter of fact DC…..i offer extended apologies for disappointing you.

I love how “Lauryn Hill” has become a verb.

Thanks Benevere for the tip
Want more Witches’ Brew?
Like us | Follow us | Get fed

It’s been quite the rough patch for DMX. (Sidebar: at what point does a rough patch just become life?) The Phoenix New Times reports the incarcerated rapper has been moved to a mental health unit at an Arizona State Prison Complex facility. Earlier this month, Earl Simmons was sentenced to a year in jail after pleading guilty to violating the terms of his probation. When he was sentenced, the judge said she believes he has “an undiagnosed mental condition,” possibly bi-polar disorder. Apparently, Dark Man X tried to beat up some reporter years ago who dared ask about the state of his mental health. So, I’d say the judge is probably on to something here, huh?

This is the 13th jail/prison stint for DMX. Maybe he’ll get the help he needs now.

Image via Arizona Department of Corrections
Spotted
Want more Witches’ Brew?
Like us | Follow us | Get fed

President Obama is riding the Michael Vick bandwagon. The President called Jeffrey Lurie –the owner of the Philadelphia Eagles– and congratulated him and the team for giving Vick a second chance after his prison stint for dogfighting.

NBC’s Peter King says Lurie told him that “the president was passionate about the fact that it’s rarely a level playing field for prisoners once they leave jail. And he said the message was, what the Eagles had done with Vick was important for society.” Um, okay, I’ll agree with the prez but you can’t just go hiring prisoners all willy nilly and such. Anyway, critics say (cuz they always got somethin’ to say) that Obama’s call should have come a year ago when the Eagles first signed Vick.

Meanwhile, a White House spokesman now says the President called Lurie in the first place to talk about using alternative energy at Lincoln Financial Field, where the Eagles play, and Vick came up during that conversation. Sounds like there’s some damage control going on there…darn PETA people…

Source
Want more Witches’ Brew?
Like us | Follow us | Get fed

The cause of R&B legend Teena Marie’s death is still unknown but reports are coming in now about the singer’s history of seizures.

TMZ reports:

Teena suffered a grand mal seizure a month before her death. Close family friends tell us Teena has suffered other seizures, but the grand mal shook her up badly. We’re told she had broken two ribs after falling during that seizure.

We’re told the L.A. County Coroner’s Office found diazepam — an antiseizure drug — at Teena’s home, but friends say she had stopped taking the medicine because of side effects and began taking herbal remedies instead.

Friends also tell TMZ … Teena was so scared of having another grand mal seizure she would have someone sleep next to her at night.

Friends say on Saturday night someone slept in the same room with Teena and left in the morning. Teena was talking with her bodyguard at around 11:30 AM. She went back to bed in the early afternoon — no one was with her when she slept. Teena’s daughter checked in with her at around 1 PM and Teena was fine.

But at around 3 PM, Teena’s daughter checked in with her again, and found her unresponsive.

The Coroner has said signs point to death from natural causes. But “natural causes” could be death from a seizure.

You just don’t think about anyone dying of “natural causes” at 54. It just doesn’t seem, well, natural. Adding to the sadness surrounding Teena’s passing: her only daughter Alia Rose (who found her mother dead) just celebrated her 19th birthday on Christmas.

If you have TVOne, you can catch an encore presentation of Teena’s Unsung episode tonight at 9 pm (ET) and again at midnight.

BTW, seizures are nothing to play with…click below to watch a Dr. Oz clip about what to do in the event someone you know suffers a seizure. You could save a life!

Image via Apega/WENN
Want more Witches’ Brew?

Like us | Follow us | Get fed

What a year! What a year?!?  Much of the hope that we felt as 2010 began was abruptly halted when thousands died in Haiti’s massive earthquake in January.  The year’s ups and downs continued with the BP oil spill and, then, the successful rescue of 33 Chilean miners trapped underground for more than two months.  As 2010 comes to a close, let’s take a look back at everything else in between…

Falls From Grace

Bishop Eddie Long

Bishop Eddie Long: sexual coercion lawsuits and talk of improper mortgage schemes led to the fall of one of the country’s most notable megachurch leaders. This guy couldn’t pray 2010 away even if he tried.

BP Oil: not that they were ever beloved, but the mishandling of the Gulf oil rig explosion put them on the fallen list so much that the President was looking to kick someone’s arse.

T.I. & Tiny

Democrats: they took a shellacking at the polls in November.

T.I. & Tiny: these two went from newlywed and ballin’ in a Maybach to writing jailhouse letters again in what seemed like a matter of minutes.

Lindsay Lohan: she’s been falling for years, but getting tossed in the slammer –and then rehab– was the cherry on top of a year of fail for the starlet.

Jesse James

Paris Hilton: the weed isn’t yours…neither is the coke or the Chanel bag. Poor thing, Kim Kardashian took all your shine…all that’s left is making headlines for drugs.

Jesse James: TV chop shop host cheats on Oscar-winning actress/producer with a low budget Nazi tattoo model? You can’t make this stuff up.

Mel Gibson: his career took a scuba dive in the sh*tter when recordings of his verbal assault against his babymamma hit the innawebs. Poor Mel, all he wanted was to be blown!

Lil Kim: her constant needling of newcomer Nicki Minaj is very un-queeny. If you’re supposed to be THE Queen B, a newbie buzzing around you isn’t supposed to even hit your radar.

Deaths

Teddy Pendergrass

Teddy Pendergrass: crooner of baby-making jams who preferred the lights off

Leslie Nielsen: funny man who did not want to be called Shirley

Gregory Isaacs: reggae legend who needed a Night Nurse

Barbara Billingsley: the Beav’s mom, jive talker

Tom Bosley: Mr. Cunningham, “Father” who dug a good mystery

Lena Horne: timeless beauty, possessor of grace, did not enjoy stormy weather

Tony Curtis: actor, Jamie Lee’s dad, liked it “Hot”

Lena Horne

Dr. Dorothy Height: civil rights legend, black family unifier, author, soror to many

Teena Marie: funkiest white girl in R&B, loved in Portuguese, has been here before

Lynn Redgrave: actress, Georgy Girl, sister to Vanessa

Rue McClanahan: the baddest Golden Girl

Gary Coleman: frequently wanted to know what Willis was taumbout

Eunice Johnson: purveyor of Fashion Fair & Ebony magazine

Ali Woodson

Corey Haim: a Tiger Beat favorite, lost boy

Dixie Carter: fiesty Designing Woman

John Forsythe: keeper of the Angels, Dynasty’s pimp daddy 

Alexander McQueen: maker of fashion fineries

Manute Bol: NBA baller, Sudanese activist

Jimmy Dean: sausage king

Guru

Ali “Ollie” Woodson: Temptation who treated ‘em like ladies

Andrew Koenig: Boner, friend of Mike Seaver

Diaperman: guardian of the funk

Guru: spitter of jazzy rhymes

Zelda Rubinstein: actress, communicated with the Poltergeist

Elizabeth Edwards: cancer champion, health care reformer, lawyer, devoted wife & mother

Come Ups and Comebacks

Michael Vick

Michael Vick: from the doghouse to the starting lineup. Is there a ring in his future?

Chilean miners: 33 men emerged from the darkness of being trapped in a mine for more than two months…one even had to pick between the wife and the side-piece.

Kanye West & Taylor Swift

Kanye West: a year ago, his name was “mud” after stealing that little country girl’s thunder at the VMAs. Now, he’s got the most critically-acclaimed album of the year. Kanye’s Comeback Plan.

Nicki Minaj: she’s won over a legion of “Barbies” with her spastic nursery rhyme raps. She’s the hottest chick in the game because she’s the only chick in the game (sadly).

Betty White: from commercials to movies and sitcoms, this Golden Girl was everywhere this year, proving you can still run with the big dogs…and lead the pack at 88.

Amber Rose: from stripper to arm candy to soon-to-be reality TV “star.” Yeezy taught her well.

New Orleans Saints: the team went from ain’ts to Super Bowl champs and put a city back together in the process.

Betty White

Chris Brown: Mr. Take You Down is putting the “beat down” behind him, passing domestic violence class and hopefully saying deuces to his childish ways.

South Beach: the hotspot where everyone is “taking their talents” these days, except, of course: Savannah’s wedding planner.

That WikiLeaks dude: briefly jailed then released to house arrest in a mansion isn’t so bad, huh? The world’s leaders are still shook by what Jullian Assange’s website will publish next.

Wigs: from lacefronts to colorful ones of the Kool Aid variety… your everyday basic brawd is channeling her inner Beyonce/Minaj/Rihanna these days.

Health Care Reform Law: signed in March but my bill went up 30 bucks. What gives, Mr. O? Anyway, it’s a big deal for the Obama Administration that will hopefully improve care for all of us.

NeNe Leakes

Minty mango-scented lotion: The Boondocks made young, black wanna-be actors everywhere hope to one day be offered a rubdown with this moisturizing goodness in hopes of snagging a Tyler Perry movie role.

R. Kelly: well, he’s back…but that doesn’t mean we wanted him to return.

Sade: after some 10 years off the grid, Sade returned with a new album, and soon, a tour.  She also proved black doesn’t crack.

NeNe’s nose: nostrils haven’t gotten this much attention since Michael Jackson’s.

Jimmy McMillan: The Rent Is Too Damn High guy complained his way to a possible 2012 presidential run.

Fantasia: so she spent half the year branded as “the mistress”… she also got her GED and managed to shake off those homewrecking accusations– thanks to a judge.

TSA employees: what other job PAYS you to feel-up people?

Swizz Beatz

Tea Party: largely responsible for that shellacking the Democrats took in November.

Swizz Beatz: he was a successful producer before he knocked up and married Alicia Keys, but you can’t help but notice all the shine, endorsements and buzz surrounding him since the nuptials. #nothating #justsayin

Kate Middleton: the commoner turned soon-to-be princess. Queen one day? She got the balding brother though. *shrug*

Willow Smith: whipped her hair to a record deal and international stardom but she’d better get crackin’ on her “maths.”

Lil Wayne: all the hoping in the world couldn’t keep this guy in prison.  Oh well, Drake kept his seat warm…

Isaiah Mustafa

Brandy: thanks to Dancing With The Stars, Americans have said the name “Brandy” like it’s 1996 and Moesha was the hotness.

The Old Spice Guy: Isaiah Mustafa is just fine and I want to see more of him. That is all.

Just Go Away…Already

Antoine Dodson

Antoine Dodson: the first couple of weeks, it was funny to hide yo kids, hide yo wife, but now, it’s just smarmy to keep making money off the attempted rape of your sister. Exit stage left, sir.

T-Pain: do I really need to explain why?

Sarah Palin: it was cute when you were just winking, droppin’ the “Gs” off your words and losing the election, now it’s just annoying and a bit scary that so many share your beliefs.

Soulja Boy

Kat Stacks: being a groupie for the sake of groupiedom is just sad. At least get a reality show and a shoe deal out of it.

Any “celeb” that makes you stop and wonder “what is their talent, again?” (this includes anyone with the last name Kardashian)

Skinny jeans: …and take the sagging jeans with you.

Anyone who ever lived on the Jersey Shore and made a TV show about it.

Soulja Boy: (see T-Pain)

Who’s On Your List?

Of course this list doesn’t include all the happenings from 2010.  So, what tops your list of big events for 2010? Who don’t you want to see in 2011? Leave your 2010 recap in the comments section below.

Thanks for reading all of our rants, news, Brewshyt and musings this year.  We hope you have a great new year and that you’ll stick with us in 2011…we’re going balls to the wall!

Want more Witches’ Brew?
Like us | Follow us | Get fed

Twitter proved to be a credible news source tonight in the worst of ways. Ron Isley, Sheila E., CNN’s Roland Martin and entertainment reporter Jawn Murray were on their grind confirming some very sad news before any of the mainstream press: 54 year old R&B legend Teena Marie died in her home, reportedly in her sleep. Her daughter found her in her bedroom some time today. She had reportedly suffered a seizure last month. Radio stations in Philadelphia and Chicago have also confirmed the very sad news.

Here’s a stroll down memory lane with Lady T…

And here’s a look at how the news came down, via Twitter…

Just found out a friend, Tina Marie passed away. I really did't expect to hear this. RIP. We will miss you much!

12/26/2010 8:14 pm via Twitter for AndroidReplyRetweetFavorite

@TheRealRonIsley

Ronald Isley

Sorry guys, yes Teena Marie has passed away..

12/26/2010 8:29 pm via Twitter for AndroidReplyRetweetFavorite

@TheRealRonIsley

Ronald Isley

Mike Gardner, the manager of @teenamarie, just told me that it is true: the legendary R&B singer has indeed died.

12/26/2010 9:15 pm via FacebookReplyRetweetFavorite

@rolandsmartin

rolandsmartin

No cause of death has been provided in the death of Teena Marie. Her manager, Mike Gardner, said her body is at the coroner's office

12/26/2010 9:31 pm via FacebookReplyRetweetFavorite

@rolandsmartin

rolandsmartin

But Marie's publicist, Lynn Jeter, told me that a month ago, Teena Marie suffered a grand mal seizure while watching a movie in her bed.

12/26/2010 9:32 pm via FacebookReplyRetweetFavorite

@rolandsmartin

rolandsmartin

I just talked to Eddie Levert about Teena Marie: “In terms of vocals, she was one of the blackest people I know."

12/26/2010 9:51 pm via FacebookReplyRetweetFavorite

@rolandsmartin

rolandsmartin

Tina Marie found dead at her home. no details yet.

12/26/2010 9:13 pm via webReplyRetweetFavorite

@SheilaEdrummer

SheilaEdrummer

Her daughter found her in her bedroom already passed. she had seizers prior too this passing. please pray for her family.

12/26/2010 9:16 pm via webReplyRetweetFavorite

@SheilaEdrummer

SheilaEdrummer

They just took her body from her home. Teena Marie found dead by her daughter whos BD was yesterday. pray 4 her & her family.

12/26/2010 9:20 pm via webReplyRetweetFavorite

@SheilaEdrummer

SheilaEdrummer

this has just been confirmed. Teena Marie has passed.

12/26/2010 9:42 pm via webReplyRetweetFavorite

@SheilaEdrummer

SheilaEdrummer

Sad to confirm that I just got official word that Teena Marie has died. Causes yet unknown. R.I.P.

12/26/2010 9:27 pm via ÜberSocialOrigReplyRetweetFavorite

@JawnMurray

Jawn Murray

Please keep Teena Marie's family in your prayers. She died in her sleep. Causes yet unknown. Was discovered by her daughter. R.I.P.

12/26/2010 9:38 pm via ÜberSocialOrigReplyRetweetFavorite

@JawnMurray

Jawn Murray

Several celebrities on Twitter including my friend @kymwhitley were initially told by Teena Marie's rep to post it was NOT confirmed.

12/26/2010 9:42 pm via ÜberSocialOrigReplyRetweetFavorite

@JawnMurray

Jawn Murray

Since then, Teena Marie's mgt confirmed via her rep that the singer has died. Please pray for her family & be kind to her celeb friends.

12/26/2010 9:44 pm via ÜberSocialOrigReplyRetweetFavorite

@JawnMurray

Jawn Murray

Teena sent her last tweet less than 24 hours ago, further indicating how precious life really is. RIP Lady T.  There’s going to be a helluva “Fire & Desire” jam session up above tonight.

Want more Witches’ Brew?
Like us | Follow us | Get fed

How in the hayle did Macaulay Culkin hook this hot piece? I just saw “Black Swan” and Mila Kunis stole the show. Needless to say she intrigued my lady lions so when I got home I “goo goo’d” her, like females do with every cute bitch….and this goofy ass picture popped up… and my lions quickly retracted like Naomi Cambell’s hairline. This couple to me will be one of life’s big mysteries along with the Loch Ness Monster and Big Foot. I’m just going to assume Macaulay C got that “good good” and leave it at that!

Top Chef host, model and authoress^© Padma Lakshmi is our latest Brew Beauty. This Indian-born beauty grew up in Madras, India and New York. She was born to an Indian father and an European mother (thanks, Wikipedia). When she was 14, Padma’s hip and arm were crushed in a car accident, leaving her with a scar on her right arm, just below her shoulder. She reps proudly for the birth mark/scar-having crowd by putting that scar on display any chance she gets… proving that perfection is for punks…don’t hide your beautiful imperfections! Padma would go on to work as a model during her teen years. She would later star in music videos and movies (see her fine lip synching job in Glitter).

Padma wrote a couple of successful cookbooks (she’s a model…who actually EATS!). In 2004, the 40 year old had a short lived marriage to controversial author Salman Rushdie who is creepily just 7 years younger than her estranged father. Padma divorced Rushdie in 2007 and, earlier this year, she had a daughter, Krishna after years of fertility struggles. “Sources” say her babydaddy is the very rich Adam Dell (as in, kin to the people who make laptops).

Padma works with a number of charities, ranging from endometriosis (something she suffered with) to Keep A Child Alive (she’s a global ambassador). I’d totally like to hang with her, not so much in a girl-crush kind of way. I’d just like to go on a restaurant tour with her and maybe eat some burgers. She seems cool to eat a burger with. Anyway… Padma has hosted Top Chef since the second season, after Bravo sent Billy Joel’s old wife packing. Sorry, she was a snoozefest to me. Anywho… if you want to see more of Padma, hop over to our Facebook page for our Brew Beauty gallery to see more of Padma. And while you’re there, “LIKE” us and follow our blog.

^© Maya Wilkes
Want more Witches’ Brew?
Like us | Follow us | Get fed

Diddy is in the holiday spirit. He’s offered to pay for model Miyoki Jones’ hair. Remember, she’s the model whose ‘do caught fire –live on UStream– as she splashed about in a bathtub surrounded by candles during Diddy Dirty Money’s Last Train To Paris album release party. After the incident, Diddy called to check on Miyoki and also offered to pay for her new hair ‘do which is expected to run about a grand. What a nice diddy…

Source
Want more Witches’ Brew?
Like us | Follow us | Get fed

Teairra Mari (*had to look that up to spell it right*) isn’t the princess of Da Roc anymore so she has to drum up her own publicity. In fact, what does she do again? Anyway, she has a new mixtape project, so why not use the age-old “let me stir up my own buzz, sans clothes” technique, right? She tweeted from the steam room: “Steamin’ it up does wonders for the skin” and attached a pic of herself, topless as a jaybird.

Hey, whatever works, right? Here’s the link for her mixtape The Night Before X-Mas” (we’ll give you a lil publicity, boo).

Image via Twitter
Spotted
Want more Witches’ Brew?
Like us | Follow us | Get fed

When I recently read that Millionaire Matchmaker’s Patti Stanger’s engagement last year was reportedly a fraud and only done to save program ratings my mouth dropped open like Diddy’s. I guess it makes sense since it would be hard to push a “reality show” on matchmaking if the damn president of the company can’t even get a man. Stanger has since called the wedding off. *throws up side-eye* Now, I love this show. Bravo programming is definitely the apple of my eye or the man I may never get, but when one of my acting homies from back home popped up at one of Patti’s “mixers” I was dunzo!

May your Holiday be filled with the

Joy and Elation

of

Spike Lee at a Knickerbocker game.

The basement-dwelling grandpa of the Real Housewives of Atlanta sat down with Baltimore’s 92Q radio to talk about his marriage. Gregg Leakes also weighed-in on his feelings about the show, whether his wife has changed, and he talked about that infamous “personal” conversation about his wife that leaked on the radio.

I hope they can make it work. #Blacklove

Anyway, I wonder what kind of juices and berries Gregg uses in his slickback?!?

Spotted
Want more Witches’ Brew?
Like us | Follow us | Get fed

The Roots performed their rendition of the holiday classic “The Christmas Song” on Late Night with Jimmy Fallon. Watch as Black Thought gets his Nat King Cole on (and I’m digging the Christmas sweaters)…

Is there anything The Roots can’t do?

Want more Witches’ Brew?
Like us | Follow us | Get fed

The man responsible for the downfall of dentistry is opening up about his extreme weight loss, thanks to gastric sleeve surgery.

Paul Wall tells Ozone Mag about his wake up call:

When did you decide to get serious about losing weight?
Honestly, when we were in Afghanistan and [reps for VH1's] Celebrity Fit Club were contacting [me] about coming on the show. That was a hell of a wake-up call. [Being fat] isn’t a secret. You can look in the mirror and try to hide it and cover it up, and it may work here or there, but there ain’t no shirt or hat you can put on or haircut you can get to hide the fact that you’re morbidly obese. That’s what the doctor said: I was “morbidly obese.” I decided not to do [the show] but it was still a wake-up call to have people calling you saying, “Hey, you’re really, really fat.”

What kind of weight-loss surgery did you get?
The surgery I got is called gastric sleeve. There’s three kinds: gastric bypass, lap band, and the gastric sleeve. Gastric bypass is the one where you lose the most weight the quickest; it’s for people who are 400-500 pounds and have health problems that they need to fix right away. Since [the weight loss] happens so fast it leaves you with a lot of saggy skin. The lap band, which is very popular, is when they put a band around your stomach and it makes you feel like you’re full, so you don’t eat. But there’s ways to cheat with it, and with the lap band, you can always get it removed to go back to normal. [My weight] has been up and down my whole life, so I wanted to do something to permanently fix the problem. Since going back and forth on the drugs for years and taking diet pills, my metabolism was really gone. So I decided to go with the gastric sleeve, because it’s a little more serious than the lap band. They also cut out the hormones that make you hungry. So I actually don’t even get hungry anymore. The doctor talked me out of doing the lap band; he told me it’s the most popular, but it’s not as effective. With the lap band, you lose about 50% of your excess weight. I was 120 pounds overweight. I weighed 320 pounds, and I’m six feet tall. So with the lap band I still would’ve been morbidly obese. With the gastric sleeve, you typically lose 80% of your excess fat. I lost 100 pounds with it, so that’s putting me in a more healthy weight class.

Having lost 100 pounds, do you see a noticeable difference in your life?
Yeah, hands down. I feel like I got my life back. When you’re so big like that, it’s embarrassing. I didn’t want to go out and be seen. I felt uncomfortable because I’m not used to being that big. People would see me and say something about it, because it was no secret. I was morbidly obese, 120 pounds overweight. It was just embarrassing. I’d be on stage feeling like I was about to collapse. I’d get dizzy spells. I’d be on the airplane and have to ask for seatbelt extensions. Once you go up in the air, it’s really hard to breath. I was just thinking, “What if I have a heart attack?” I want to be here for my kids. I don’t want to have a heart attack. My son is four and my daughter is two and a half. The doctor told me that when you’re 50 pounds overweight, it takes 15 years off your life. So it literally saved my life.

Have you been working out too?
Nah. I’ve probably worked out twice since I had [the surgery] and that was just a light workout.

I don’t know if I could trust anything that won’t me be hungry?!? But, congrats to him on getting his life right.

Spotted
Want more Witches’ Brew?
Like us | Follow us | Get fed

I used to think this guy was an 11 on the “wackadoodle for no reason” scale but the more I see of Ron Ron, the more I like him.

Lakers player Ron Artest is the face of the Los Angeles County Department of Mental Health’s campaign to get more people to seek treatment.

After the Lakers won the championship this year, Ron Ron publicly thanked his psychiatrist for helping him “relax a lot.” There’s nothing wrong with asking for help… I hope Ron’s efforts will help people see that.

I made it all the way through this post without taking a shot at Kobe. It really is Christmas…
Image via Andrew D. Bernstein/NBAE/Getty Images
Spotted
Want more Witches’ Brew?
Like us | Follow us | Get fed

Antoine Dodson is riding the attempted rape of his sister all the way to the bank…still. He debuted a new “Christmas” song that fires shots at Santa on George Lopez’s show.

I want this guy to get laryngitis in 2011…for the entire year.

Want more Witches’ Brew?
Like us | Follow us | Get fed

Fantasia may have just landed herself a big win in her “you broke up my marriage” case. A North Carolina court found ‘Tasia’s “lover” Antwaun Cook was, in fact, separated from his wife at the time of their “affair.” A judge ruled in favor of Cook in his divorce case against his wife, Paula, noting their separation date was in September of 2009 and NOT in June of this year as Paula claimed. Paula claims Fantasia knew Antwaun was married and carried on an “affair” anyway. It’s not clear how the court’s decision will affect Paula Cook’s hopes of suing Fantasia for “alienation of affection.”

Should we be happy for Fantasia? Does anybody actually “win” in this situation?

Source
Want more Witches’ Brew?
Like us | Follow us | Get fed