Lena Waithe News

In anticipation of the March 29 release of Steven Spielberg's new action adventure, 'Ready Player One,' attendees at this year's South by Southwest (SXSW) Conference and Festivals can step into the immersive Ready Player One Experience with VIVE VR. A two-story, city block takeover of Brazos Hall, the event runs from Friday, March 9, to Sunday, March 11, and will showcase the sights, sounds and atmosphere of the film, including exciting virtual reality (VR) content from HTC VIVE.

Enter The Worlds Of Steven Spielberg's New Film At The SXSW READY PLAYER ONE Experience

According to Billboard, singer-songwriter Brandi Carlile has charted in the number one spot on their Top Rock Chart  with her latest release BY THE WAY, I FORGIVE YOU. The album was released February 16. This marks the second time Carlile has earned the top spot. Read more about it here from Billboard! 

In Steven Spielberg's new science fiction action adventure, “Ready Player One,” the race is on to be the first to find three keys in the virtual world of the OASIS.  But fans don't have to wait to 2045 to level up their lives in the digital universe.  In anticipation of the film's March 29th release, Warner Bros. is giving fans the opportunity to win one of three keys opening the door to fantastic prizes from Atom Tickets, Spotify or Lyft.

OWN: Oprah Winfrey Network will air Essence's 11th annual 'Black Women in Hollywood Awards' as a primetime special event on Saturday, March 3 at 10 p.m. ET/PT. For over a decade, the star-studded celebration has been at the forefront of honoring Hollywood's most creative and accomplished African-American female visionaries, both in front of the camera and behind the scenes.

OWN: Oprah Winfrey Network will air Essence's 11th annual “Black Women in Hollywood Awards” as a primetime special event on Saturday, March 3 at 10 p.m. ET/PT. For over a decade, the star-studded celebration has been at the forefront of honoring Hollywood's most creative and accomplished African-American female visionaries, both in front of the camera and behind the scenes.

SHOWTIME will celebrate SMILF, THE CHI and SHAMELESS at the South by Southwest® (SXSW®) Conference and Festivals from Thursday, March 15 through Saturday, March 17 with art, food and music at The SHOWTIME House at Clive Bar on Rainey Street in Austin, Texas. On Thursday, March 15, SHOWTIME will feature a diverse lineup of female-fronted bands across multiple genres including rising teenage indie rocker Snail Mail and experimental violinist and vocalist Sudan Archives, in honor of the Golden Globe® nominated comedy SMILF. Golden Globe nominee Frankie Shaw will make a special appearance introducing headliner Princess Nokia, whose music was also featured on the show. Friday, March 16 will be dedicated to the hit drama THE CHI, with food from Harold's Chicken Shack in Chicago, a custom sneaker gallery, Chicago graffiti art and featuring live hip hop artists. Chicago-based artist Joey Purp will perform, along with Lee Fields & the Expressions, whose music is featured on THE CHI. The night will culminate with a DJ set from RUN-DMC's Darryl DMC McDaniels, introduced by THE CHI star Jacob Latimore. And finally, on St. Patrick's Day, The SHOWTIME House will transform into an “Alibi Bar” pop up, where SXSW badge holders can party like a Gallagher with drinks served by SHAMELESS stars Shanola Hampton and Steve Howey. Musical acts include Low Cut Connie, Tank and The Bangas and headliners WAVVES.

According to Deadline, TBS has green lit the new single camera comedy series from Lena Waithe. She is an Emmy award winner for her role on MASTER OF NONE, and is the creator and executive producer of THE CHI on Showtime. Read more about the TBS pick up from Deadline here!

BRIC is pleased to announce that Academy and Grammy Award-winning actor and musician Common will open the 40th annual BRIC Celebrate Brooklyn! Festival with a free concert on June 5 at the Prospect Park Bandshell, marking the first event in a yearlong celebration to cap off four decades for the pioneering NYC arts-and-media organization and leading presenter of free cultural programming in Brooklyn. Preceding the concert will be a gala honoring outgoing BRIC President Leslie Griesbach Schultz for her 13 years of transformational leadership.

ESSENCE, the preeminent brand for African-American women, has announced the honorees for its prestigious “Black Women in Hollywood Awards.” The highly anticipated annual Oscar-week celebration—which returns as a daytime luncheon—will be held on Thursday, March 1st, at the Beverly Wilshire in Beverly Hills, CA.

Viewers will have the opportunity to catch up on the hit drama THE CHI when SHOWTIME airs mini marathons of the first four episodes on Sunday, February 4, starting at 12 p.m. ET/PT and 8 p.m. ET/PT. The series will resume with a new episode on Sunday, February 11 at 10 p.m. ET/PT. All episodes of THE CHI are also available on SHOWTIME streaming, SHOWTIME ANYTIME® and SHOWTIME ON DEMAND®. Created and executive produced by Emmy® Award winner Lena Waithe (Master of None) and executive produced by Academy Award®, Emmy and Golden Globe® winner Common (Selma), THE CHI explores the humanity behind the headlines sensationalizing the South Side of Chicago.

The American Black Film Festival (ABFF) Honors is excited to announce that Lena Waithe (The CHI, Ready Player One) is confirmed to present at the annual ceremony held at The Beverly Hilton in Los Angeles on Sunday, February 25th, hosted by comedian and actor Cedric the Entertainer.

SHOWTIME has renewed its hit drama series THE CHI for a second season, it was announced today by Gary Levine, President of Programming, Showtime Networks Inc. Created and executive produced by Emmy Award winner Lena Waithe (Master of None) and executive produced by Academy Award®, Emmy and Golden Globe® winner Common (Selma), THE CHI explores the humanity behind the headlines sensationalizing the South Side of Chicago. Ayanna FloydDavis (Empire, Hannibal) has signed on for season two as executive producer and showrunner. Produced by Fox 21 Television Studios, the series will go back into production in Chicago later this year.

21st Century Fox Global Inclusion Unveils 2018 FOX WRITERS LAB Participants

Day 2 at the MACRO Lodge presented by Shea Moisture went out with a bang! Mistaken multiple times for TAO by passersby due to the overwhelming crowd waiting to get in, Midnight MACRO hosted by Charles and Stacey King, at the MACRO Lodge on Main St was Saturday night's best party. The overcapacity event brought in not only the cast of MACRO's Sorry to Bother You (Tessa Thompson, Lakeith Stanfield, Steven Yeun, Director Boots Riley) which had its Sundance premiere earlier in the evening, but also saw a number of the festival's other attendees including Black-ish creator Kenya Barris, Omari Hardwick, Anthony Ramos (She's Gotta Have It), Coleman Domingo, Lena Waithe, Danai Gurira, John Legend, Issa Rae and Insecure co-star Jay Ellis, Gabby Sidobe, and Chris Hardwick.

The Blackhouse at 2018 Sundance Film Festival announces its schedule for Sunday, Jan. 21. Check out the full listings here.

Nominees have been reveale for The 10th annual SHORTY AWARDS. The awards recognize the best of social media, including influencers, brands, and organizations on Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, Tumblr, Instagram, Snapchat, and more. The Awards also honor the Best in Comedy as well as Best TV Show.

The winners of the 49th NAACP Image Awards were announced tonight during the live broadcast from the Pasadena Civic Auditorium which aired on TV One (see complete winners list below).

The winners of the 49th NAACP Image Awards in the non-televised categories were announced during a gala dinner celebration that took Sunday, January 14, 2018, at the Pasadena Conference Center the event was hosted by The Real's Adrienne Houghton, Loni Love, Jeannie Mai and Tamera Mowry-Housley.

SHOWTIME has debuted a new trailer for the highly anticipated drama series THE CHI, created and executive produced by Emmy winner Lena Waithe (Master of None), and executive produced by Academy Award , Emmy and Golden Globe winner Common