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https://www.blackenterprise.com/andre-3000-surprise-concert-grady/
OutKast’s André 3000 surprised some newborns and their mothers with an impromptu concert at Atlanta’s Grady Hospital. The rapper and musician played the flute and then posed for photos with fans.
Grady Hospital shared a photo of the artist posing with the mothers and babies on social media.
“Grady moms and babies were treated to their pop-up flute concert by the legendary André Benjamin – right here in our halls. Sounded like serenity in the key of #ATL,” the post said.
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“This is the most Atlanta thing I’ve ever seen,” one commenter wrote.
Days earlier, the rapper, whose real name is André Benjamin, surprised fans with a pop-up concert in a parking lot near Metro-Mart on Metropolitan Parkway. The musician performed songs from his 2023 instrumental flute album, New Blue Sun.
Big Boi, one-half of the OutKast duo, along with other members of the rap collective Dungeon Family, were also present for the impromptu performance.
Big Boi, whose real name is Antwan Patton, posted a photo of the duo with the caption “Saxxx & Stacks.”
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Fans filled the comments section with requests for a reunion tour. In an interview with The Guardian, Benjamin discussed his friendship with Patton and the future of the hip-hop duo he co-founded three decades ago.
“Like all relationships, it’s a chemistry thing. Sometimes, you need a new formula to keep things fresh. He’s been one of my closest friends since before we made our first raps. I can’t rule out anything or predict what will happen in the future. I don’t know where the ride is taking me.”
The longtime friends and bandmates will gather in November for their induction into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, alongside other iconic figures such as Salt-N-Pepa and DJ Spinderella.
Earlier this year, André 3000 attended the Met Gala wearing an eye-catching backpack modeled after a Steinway Model S baby grand piano. The 30-pound piece was made from foam and plywood. This show-stopping accessory served as an announcement. On his way to the Met Gala, the multi-hyphenate musician released his latest musical project, 7 Piano Sketches.
Where will Three Stacks appear next? Will he play the flute or the piano, or will he drop some bars? We’re not sure — but we know it’ll be magical.
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Tony Stark adorning his Mark III armor was one of the highlights of the first Iron Man movie from 2008. Every subsequent armor iteration included additional features and capabilities, and was introduced with a really fantastic suit-up scene. This also includes the legendary Mark 50, the first to utilize nanotechnology, and Mark 85, which was the most advanced armor Tony has ever made in the MCU.
Even cooler is the Armor Model 37, also known as the Bleeding Edge from the comics, which relied upon nanomachines stored in the hollow areas of Tony’s bones, allowing the suit to be summoned and formed around Tony almost instantly. However, while Stark developed his suits using vast resources and experience at his disposal, Riri Williams, a teenage prodigy from the upcoming Ironheart miniseries, had to make her own armor by reverse-engineering Stark’s and combining it with the materials she sourced herself, showcasing her ingenuity and determination.
We already saw Riri’s first armor in action in Ryan Coogler’s Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, where she used the armor to outmaneuver the CIA and take out a surveillance drone that was following Okoye and Shuri. Unfortunately, the armor was severely damaged when she was attacked by the Talokanil, prompting her to create a newer and more advanced model towards the end of the movie. But even her initial armor in the movies seemed different than the one from the comic books, which actually resembled Stark’s tech, with notable differences in performance and features.
The comic book version of Riri Williams actually reverse-engineered the technology of Tony Stark’s Model 41 armor, which focused on sustainability in the harsh environment of space. The armor was designed to recycle everything its user’s body needs, making it perfectly capable of sustaining a person for several weeks. She used the armor’s design and some of its parts for the basis of her prototype Ironheart Armor, combining it with the materials stolen from her college campus. When the campus security became aware of her activities, Riri took the prototype and fled.
The initial design of her armor was quite rudimentary. Despite her having an IQ that rivaled that of Tony Stark, Riri lacked the resources, engineering experience, and the help of the world’s most advanced AI that Tony had at his disposal. The first version of her armor featured a communication system and a HUD, but it lacked any offensive capabilities and had poor defensive capabilities. Sure, it allowed Riri to fly around and it granted her enhanced strengths, but it lacked AI integration, which made the suit hard to use and handle properly.
With that said, Riri did use this exact version to intercept a couple of inmates escaping from the New Mexico State Penitentiary by crashing into their escape vehicle, which further compromised her armor integrity. Hearing about her efforts, Tony Stark reached out to Riri and helped her rebuild her armor and integrate AI and more advanced weaponry, and Riri used this exact version to carry on Iron Man’s legacy after Tony fell into a coma.
Riri would subsequently replace the crude suit with a much more advanced version. This new version was built with the help of an AI version of Tony Stark (since the real Tony was in a coma), who actually integrated with the new armor, providing her with significant computational power, as well as radar and sensory information in the heat of battle. Of course, both the offensive and defensive capabilities of this new armor have been significantly enhanced.
The subsequent version, Model 3, was even more advanced, especially in terms of durability and aerodynamics. The new design made the suit lighter, faster, and more powerful, and it is accompanied by a new AI assistant, N.A.T.A.L.I.E., who resembles Riri’s late friend. Some of its enhancements are derived from Wakandan technology, such as vibranium integration, which provided the aforementioned durability and some of the armor’s more advanced capabilities.
Admittedly, Riri Williams and Tony Stark’s respective armors don’t actually differ much, at least initially, as the former was built upon the foundations laid by the latter. However, as time went on, those differences grew. Stark’s armors are built with a strong military and weapons background, and for specific scenarios. Riri’s armor, though based on Stark’s Model 41, was created independently, without military influence, using scavenged parts, materials, and pure ingenuity. It reflected Riri’s desire to protect instead of symbolizing a billionaire’s redemption arc.
Later versions of Riri’s Ironheart armor deviated significantly from Stark’s original design; it was sleeker, more compact, and it showcased cutting-edge energy efficiency and flight capabilities, which were built with fewer resources but maximum innovation. And therein lies the true difference between the two armors: while one represents personal redemption, the other represents a young, Black female genius on a path to redefine what a superhero can be.
The new Disney+ Ironheart series premieres June 24th.
The post What Sets Ironheart’s Armor Apart from Tony Stark’s appeared first on Black Girl Nerds.
One customer says, “Applebee’s is out to get you” after looking at the tip amount on the Ziosk as they tried to pay.
“Since when is 20% of $47 $13?” questions Karl Utz (@utzfactor) in a viral TikTok. “Applebee’s is out to get you. Look at—that’s crazy.”