Ludacris Closes Straits to Focus On New Airport Restaurant
Rap mogul Ludacris announced today he was closing his popular Straits restaurant in midtown to focus on a new restaurant he’s opening inside Atlanta’s Hartsfield-Jackson airport.
According to the AJC, Ludacris, whose real name is Chris Bridges, made the decision after winning a contract to open a restaurant — Chicken N Beer — at the nation’s busiest airport.
The new restaurant was inspired by the title of Luda’s third hip hop album, Chicken N’ Beer. The new restaurant will serve “comfort food” and beer created from “locally grown ingredients,” according to the AJC.
“As I continue to learn and evolve as a businessman, I am extremely excited to put my restaurateur footprint into a new venture inside the busiest international airport in the United States, Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport,” Ludacris said in a release.
“Straits was a great segue into the industry and with Chicken N Beer I can create my own concept. I look forward to expanding my creativity and driving to a much higher plane.”
This post, originally written Jan 4, 2012 @ 2:07pm, was edited to reflect the following corrections: Straits received a score of 91 on its 2nd inspection. There was no 3rd inspection. And Chicken N’ Beer was Luda’s third album.
Concert Promoter and His Son Kidnapped At Gunpoint After Nas is a No-Show
An American concert promoter and his son learned the hard way that rappers are not the most scrupulous businessmen in the world.
According to TMZ.com, AllGood Entertainment CEO Patrick Allocco and his son are currently being held at gunpoint in an Angola hotel until rapper Nas and another rapper returns the $315K each that they were paid to perform a New Year’s Day concert.
Allocco’s people tell TMZ that Nas and opening act Jemiah Jai were paid $315k to perform 2 shows (Nas’ cash was wired to him in America) — but Nas failed to make his flight in the U.S., and apparently he didn’t reschedule the concert.
Naturally, the Angolan money man who ante’d up the cash for Nas’ concert fee assumed he was being screwed. So he sent his goons to fetch the promoter and his son and bring them to him — at gunpoint.
The promoter and his son were handed over to Angolan police and interrogated for 7 hours until the U.S. embassy stepped in to secure their release.
But they’re not quite free to go.
According to TMZ, the men are being held (likely at gunpoint) “in residence” at a local hotel while the two sides try to resolve the money situation.
Alloco’s people released this depressing message to Nas and his people:
“The hope is that Nas and Jemiah Jai will return all of the monies that were wired to them immediately so that our ransom may be paid and our safe return to the United States may be facilitated.”
Sadly, they’ll be waiting a long time if they expect Nas to return any of that money. We are taking about rappers here.
Jim Jones Accused of Stealing Drake’s Bomber Jacket Design
Beyonce and Dipset rapper Jim Jones both have something in common.
The 35-year-old rapper whose fading Hip Hop career peaked in 2006 with the release of his only hit (“We Fly High”) is being accused of ripping off one of Canadian rapper Drake’s leather jacket designs.
The two jackets do look very similar when placed side by side. The only difference seems to be the fur trim on the hoodie.
Drake recently released his limited edition OVO CDN bomber jacket which retails for a whopping $4,000 USD! The jacket features luxury buffalo leather, a silk-linked interior and a detachable fox fur trim along with real gold-plated hardware. According to Punchbowl blog, the jacket is available for purchase beginning on December 28, in Drake’s hometown, as well as in New York, Tokyo and Osaka.
Now Jim Jones is also hawking a black leather bomber jacket for $175, made from cheaper materials with a design that is similar in almost every detail to Drake’s limited edition OVO jacket.
Chris Paul is headed to LA
Last night, the New Orleans Hornets completed a blockbuster deal that will send star point guard Chris Paul, 26, to the Los Angeles Clippers for 3 players and a first-round draft choice from Minnesota. Paul, who recently married his longtime girlfriend and baby mother, will share the Clippers front court with power forward Blake Griffin, 22.
He will be introduced to Hollywood live on Foxsportswest.com today at 5PM.
NBA.com noted: “The Clips’ trade for Chris Paul wasn’t a message to the Lakers as much as it was to the entire West.”
Outfoxing the Lakers and thrilling their long-suffering fans, Los Angeles on Wednesday traded high-scoring guard Eric Gordon, former All-Star center Chris Kaman, forward Al-Farouq Aminu and a first-round draft choice acquired from Minnesota for Paul, the four-time All-Star widely considered to be the NBA’s best point guard.
“We decided for a player of Chris’ caliber that it was just time to make the move and push all our chips into the center of the table,” Clippers vice president of basketball operations Neil Olshey told the team’s website. “We’re really happy about it. Chris is the kind of player that makes everybody around him better. He’s a general. He wins. He’s a warrior, and he’s going to take this whole organization to the next level.” Source
CAUGHT: Thief Who Robbed Buckhead Men’s Boutique
The man who brazenly robbed a high end men’s clothing boutique in Buckhead for thousands in merchandise has been in a Dekalb jail since the day of the robbery.
On Saturday, career criminal Tavoris Ashmon, 25, walked into a Chamblee Audi dealership and asked to test drive a brand new Audi S-5. The Atlanta Journal reports that Ashmon nearly ran over employees as he drove off the lot. He never returned the vehicle.
Later that same evening, Ashmon strolled into the upscale MODA404 men’s clothing boutique in Buckhead. He left the grey Audi parked outside with the engine running.
An hour later, Ashmon walked out of the boutique with an armful of clothing and shoes worth $4,300, which he didn’t pay for.
“The man obviously had this crime planned out,” co-owner Lee Brockwell said. “He was very arrogant and just bold with it; he picked the stuff up and walked right out of here like he owned it.”
Later that night, an alert DeKalb officer spotted the grey Audi as it blew past him. Sgt. Dan Oak stopped the Audi and took Ashmon into custody after determining the car was stolen. Ashmon gave Oak a false name when he was arrested. He was booked into the DeKalb County jail under the name ‘John Doe’ until he could be positively identified.
Sunday night, Oak said, he recognized Ashmon in the video from MODA404 broadcast on Channel 2’s evening news program.
“‘That’s him,’ I told my wife,” Oak told Channel 2. “‘That’s the guy I arrested last night.’”
Booster Hits Moda 404 for Thousands in Merchandise (Video)
A high end Buckhead Men’s clothing store was hit by a brazen booster who stole thousands of dollars worth of merchandise by simply walking out of the store with the items.
Moda 404 owner Lee Brockwell told the Atlanta Journal she spent more than an hour chatting with the outgoing customer who seemed to want to spend a lot of money on clothes and shoes. But when she turned her back for a minute, the man brazenly walked behind the counter, picked up 3 bags of merchandise and strolled out of the store in broad daylight.
Brockwell said the man’s $4,300 take included a couple pairs of pants, jeans, shirts, a pair of sunglasses and several pairs of shoes worth $200 to $600 each.
Another customer spotted a grey Audi parked outside the store with the motor running. But the customer wasn’t sure if that was the getaway vehicle.
If you recognize the man, call the Crime Stoppers Atlanta Tipline at (404) 577-8477. Watch the surveillance video after the break.
Macy’s fires woman for refusing to allow transgender into women’s dressing room
A Macy’s department store in Texas is in the news today after the store’s manager fired a saleswoman for refusing to allow a man dressed as a woman to enter the women’s dressing room.
Natalie Johnson admits she watched the customerr from the start, and she made a beeline toward the shopper when he/she tried to enter the women’s dressing room.
Johnson told KSAT 12: “I had to just straight forward tell him, ‘You’re a man,’ and of course that really got him steamed.”
Citing her strict religious beliefs, Johnson told her manager she didn’t agree with Macy’s policy that allows transgender people to use the dressing rooms of their perceived gender.
“There are no transgenders in the world. A guy can dress up as a woman all he wants, that’s still not going to make you a woman,” Johnson said.
