Better late than never: My dear friend and groundbreaking rapper Gangsta Boo was recognized in the “In Memoriam” portion of the Grammys tonight. I guess the Recording Academy became aware of the outrage after she was left out of last year’s February broadcast even though she died on January 1 . Thank you to my…
music
Back for a Sweet Sixteen!
Sixteen years ago today, I posted a “placeholder” announcement on wbjewelry.blogspot.com, saying I’d be launching a blog soon. Two days later, a distressed Britney Spears fled a photo shoot clad in borrowed designer goods — including one of my 18K gold poison rings — and the blog posts started pouring out of me. Over the…
Buy Keith Richards a Birthday Card
I was sorting some laundry today and the date on the back of a t-shirt jumped out at me. I thought, “OMG! Did I see the Rolling Stones exactly 10 years ago today?!” I quickly turned to my #1 source for personal memories — this blog — only to discover that I went to the…
My Worst Dressed at the 2022 Grammys Is …
I started my blog in 2007 with the motto “Wear What You Want” and, accordingly, I’ve avoided naming “worst-dressed” people. I’ve decided to draw the line on someone’s look just a few times, and this is one of those moments: My worst-dressed at the 2022 Grammy Awards is the Recording Academy itself, which covered itself…
My Best Dressed at the 2022 Grammys Is …
It seemed like the producers of the Grammys show learned something from the debacle at the Oscars a week earlier. In contrast to that train wreck, the show was generally upbeat and smooth, and the In Memoriam section struck the right tone. Ukrainian president Zelenskyy addressed the viewers in a pre-recorded segment, after being rejected…
My Best Dressed at the 2022 Oscars Is …
Well, this year’s Oscars were kind of … a lot. Early on, I was checking out the red-carpet fashion and wondering if I even had the energy to bestow my prestigious Best Dressed/Wear What You Want combo award this year. On one hand, we had Megan Thee Stallion looking like a goddess. On the other hand, I…
Throwback Thursday: Anna Nicole Smith and “Fame”
Back in the day, random folks like me were able to publish on the Huffington Post. We didn’t get any money for this, just exposure. Seeing as it’s hard to pay the phone bill with “exposure” it’s probably best that the arrangement came to an end. But every so often, I remember I have a…
Throwback Thursday: Britney Spears and This Blog
I started writing this blog close to 14 years ago because of Britney Spears. Seriously. I had set up a free account on Blogspot on July 23, 2007, but that was just a placeholder. I published one post that said I would start blogging “soon” but not quite yet. Two days later, I learned that…
Jewels of the Month: Tolula in a Tiara and More
In 1985, I listened to British singer Belouis Some‘s song “Imagination” on repeat. Kids these days don’t appreciate the dedication it took to play a song obsessively back then! It was a delicate operation, what with lifting the turntable needle up from the vinyl record and moving it to that flat, grooveless space in between…
Jewel of the Month: Inspired by Lil Nas X
In 2019, 19-year-old rapper Lil Nas X vaulted from TikTok meme maker lauded by Justin Bieber to record-breaking mainstream success with his country-rap song “Old Town Road,” and there are so many things I love about this story. First of all, this song appealed to every age group, from toddlers to their grandparents. If you…