Today in Tha Wire we join the world in mourning one of the most iconic film directors of all time, John Singleton. The LA native was the first Black filmmaker/director and the youngest to be nominated for an Academy Award for Best Director. In spite of making groundbreaking films like Higher Learning, Boyz In The Hood, 2 Fast 2 Furious, Baby Boy, Four Brothers, Hustle & Flow and more he was nominated, but never won an Academy, Oscar or Emmy Award for any of his blockbuster films. Ironically, thanks to his iconic films he made movie stars out of Cuba Gooding Jr., Terrence Howard, Taraji P Henson, Ice Cube, Tyrese, Regina King, Morris Chestnut and others. May he rest in power!

Fans across the nation continue to send an outpouring of condolences as news of, the man who brought the "Black Experience" to the big screen, and his untimely death sinks-in.

Per allhiphop.com the following statement was issued by Singletons rep on behalf of his family:

It is with heavy hearts we announce that our beloved son, father and friend, John Daniel Singleton will be taken off of life support today. This was an agonizing decision, one that our family made, over a number of days, with the careful counsel of John’s doctors.

John Singleton is a prolific, ground-breaking director who changed the game and opened doors in Hollywood, a world that was just a few miles away, yet worlds away, from the neighborhood in which he grew up.

John grew up in South Central L.A with a love of cinema that showed itself early on. He went on to become one of the most lauded graduates of the USC School of Cinematic Arts. Within months of graduating, John returned to South Central to shoot his debut feature, Boyz N the Hood. The movie, which was unusually shot in sequence, masterfully captured a story of friendship, youth and the peril of hard choices in a community marred by gang violence. The film earned special honors at its debut at Cannes and Singleton went onto become the youngest director and first African-American writer-director nominated for the Academy Award. Two decades later, the film was placed in the Library of Congress, a marker of its cultural and historical significance.

John loved nothing more than giving opportunities to new talent and his films came to be known for career -making roles with actors who the industry would come to embrace; talents such as Tupac Shakur, Regina King, Cuba Gooding Jr., Terrence Howard, Ice Cube, Tyrese and Taraji P. Henson.

Singleton’s work spanned genres and showcased his curiosity and creativity: the remake of Shaft, was a homage to his mentor, Gordon Parks. He also made historical films such as Rosewood and action films such as 2 Fast 2 Furious. Films like Baby Boy and Four Brothers were prescient in the questions they posed about men and the crisis in American masculinity. As streaming platforms created new opportunities in television, Singleton took his talents to shows such as Billions, The People v. O.J. Simpson: American Crime Story and Empire. Most recently, he co-created and executive produced the current FX hit drama series Snowfall, in which he engaged such writing talents as Walter Mosley.

John was such a supernova in his youth that we forget that he was only beginning to fully assert his gifts as a director. Kurosawa was 52 when he directed High Low. Hitchcock was 56 when he directed To Catch a Thief. As much as we will treasure his body of work, we were looking forward to the films John would have made in the years ahead.

In his private life, John is a loving and supporting father, son, brother, and friend who believed in higher education, black culture, old school music and the power of film.

John’s confidence in his place in Hollywood was only matched for his passion for the sea. John kayaked in Marina Del Rey every morning. His greatest joy, when not on set, was sailing his boat, J’s Dream, up and down the Pacific Coast. The American writer Willa Cather once said, “There are some things you learn best in calm, and some in the storm.” We who have grown up with John, made movies with him, sailed with John and laughed with John, know the universe of calm and creativity he created for so many. Now in the wake of his death, we must navigate the storm without him. It is, for us, heartbreaking.

Like many African Americans, Singleton quietly struggled with hypertension. More than 40% of African American men and women have high blood pressure, which also develops earlier in life and is usually more severe. His family wants to share the message with all to please recognize the symptoms by going to Heart.org.

We are grateful to his fans, friends and colleagues for the outpour of love and prayers during this incredibly difficult time. We want to thank all the doctors at Cedars Sinai for the impeccable care he received.

John Daniel Singleton will be survived by his extraordinary mother, Sheila Ward, his father, Danny Singleton and his children Justice, Maasai, Hadar, Cleopatra, Selenesol, Isis, and Seven.

Details about memorial services will be provided at a later date.

In other news USA Today reports that music legend Peabo Bryson had a near death experience after suffering a "mild" heart attack over the weekend. The otherwise healthy 68-yr music star was very much still in the music game and just released a new album in 2018, Stand For Love. In fact he's performing various concerts in promotion of his new LP, without a hitch. His next show was scheduled for May 3, 2019 in Akron, Ohio and obviously it's unclear if he'll be released from his doctors care in time.

The good news is Bryson is "currently in recovery awake and responsive," according to his rep who went on the say "both his medical team and family are optimistic for a speedy recovery." At last word the star is at WellStar Kennestone Hospital in his hometown of Marietta. We certainly wish him the very best!

Finally Mariah Carey just wrapped up a hugely successful residency in Sin City and now comes word Mimi is going back! the  is heading back to Vegas according to The Blast The songbird will do two separate concert series live at from the Colosseum at Caesars Palace between November 2019 and  February 2020.

Mariah will do five shows for her Christmas concert series, “All I Want For Christmas Is You” Nov. 22 through Nov. 30, 2019. Take a brief break and head right back for six more shows to jumping-off at The Colosseum at Caesars Palace concert series Feb. 14 through Feb. 29, 2020. “The Butterfly Returns”

The performance dates are as follows:

All I Want For Christmas Is You”

November 2019: 22, 23, 27, 29, 30

“The Butterfly Returns”

February 2020: 14, 15, 19, 21, 22, 26, 28, 29

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