Once again, Christian Cuevas gave America what they wanted.
Christian Cuevas has captivated the judges of ‘The Voice’ since his Blind Audition and he has not stopped yet. This week, Cuevas made the cut to move from the top 10 to the top 8 semifinals. Cuevas chose one of Lady Gaga’s newest singles, “Million Reasons,” and he gave it the soulful interpretation it deserved. After his performance, Cuevas said that the emotional performance of “Million Reasons” took him back to his Blind Audition. Cuevas performed “How Am I Supposed To Live Without You” by Michael Bolton in dedication to his late father.
Alicia Keys was very clearly feeling her team member’s performance.
CREDIT: The Voice / YouTube
Cuevas did such a good job with the song that even Lady Gaga tweeted out his video.
In a post to her Instagram account, the singer shared an official photo and a caption that read, “Singing the National Anthem at #SBLIV See you in Miami @NFL.”
The announcement is proof that Latinas and Demi in particular are setting 2020 on fire.
After all, Lovato’s announcement comes just two days after she announced that she had accepted an invite to performat the 2020 Grammy Awards at the end of this month. The news sparked excitement amongst Lovato’s fans particularly because the singer hasn’t performed live since 2018 when she was hospitalized for a drug overdose.
Super Bowl LIV will be played on February 2. Fox will televise the game starting at 6:30 p.m. with kickoff shortly thereafter.
We don’t know who will face off in the 54th Super Bowl but we know who will be serving up delicious cuisine at Hard Rock Stadium the day of the big game and the big performance — a dominicana chef.
Chef Dayanny de la Cruz the Centerplate Executive Chef of the Hard Rock Stadium will be feeding guests with delicious sazón on Super Bowl Sunday.
The woman responsible for coordinating the food experience for Super Bowl LIV is Dayanny de la Cruz. The mom of three is the executive chef of the Hard Rock Stadium. FIERCE recently spoke to Chef Dayanny about her beginnings, her connections with the world of food, breaking through the glass ceiling and what it’s like to design a menu that matches JLo and Shakira’s superstardom.
Chef Dayanny was born and raised in the Dominican Republic and grew up in a home where everything happened around the kitchen table. It was the kind of childhood where her mother always insisted she eat before she play and she was able to run outside and pick ripe mangoes straight from surrounding trees. Chef Dayanny credits this early association with fresh foods and the warmth of a lively kitchen with her decision to enter the culinary world.
She first went to school to get a degree in hospitality management from Universidad Central del Este in the Dominican Republic. It was here that she decided to move to the United States with her parents and pursue a career in culinary arts. After getting her degree in Grand Rapids, MI, the newbie chef accepted her first position in a kosher kitchen at the DoubleTree Hotel in Chicago — an experience that she says was one of the most difficult and rewarding of her career.
It was during this time in Chicago that Chef Dayanny was exposed to the world of sports luxury entertainment. She quickly started building her resume with some of the most elite sports events in the US, such as the US open in New York, the Kentucky Derby and the NBA All-Stars. Chef Dayanny explained to FIERCE, the experience was a different challenge than what she was used to, but she was drawn to that difficult task.
Her experience eventually led her to Miami and the Hard Rock Stadium.
As the executive chef, this means she would be in charge of the kitchen staff for each of these locations. Chef Dayanny also oversees the menus for each concession, kitchen and restaurant at the stadium, and ensures the quality of the food leaving the kitchen. Currently, the stadium has 7 kitchens, 167 suits, 7 all-inclusive clubs and 25 concession stands.
Among those responsibilities is a self-imposed rule that Chef Dayanny expects of her kitchens: to keep them extremely diverse. Listing Central America, South America, Africa and other countries as some of the sources of inspiration for the cuisine she serves, the chef explained to FIERCE that she not only includes her own Dominican flavors into her kitchens but she encourages the native flavors of her kitchen staff to be utilized as well.
The road leading up to her high-profile career hasn’t been easy. Unfortunately, Chef Dayanna also experienced something many women — Latinas especially — experience coming up in her career.
Like in many industries, the culinary world is still very much a boys’ club. As such, women are given an especially difficult time when they enter the industry to gain experience. Sometimes the interactions are so traumatizing that women leave their industry completely to avoid facing more injustices.
Chef Dayanny confirmed that as a Latina she bumped into the infamous glass ceiling several times before climbing up the ladder. However, it wasn’t her own struggle she was concerned about, but the struggle of the next generation of women. Acknowledging that we still have a ways to go in making strides in equality, Chef Dayanny explained, “If we are standing still, not moving forward, we aren’t clearing the way for the next generation.”
As thrilled as she is about the upcoming Super Bowl, when asked how she feels knowing that she is somewhat responsible for feeding JLo and Shakira, Chef Dayanny left us with a reminder of what’s most important.
Anyone who talks to Chef Dayanny can hear how much she loves to cook and how she adores food in general. So, to reach this point in her career where she receives this honor is obviously a big deal for her. In her interview with FIERCE, we hear in her voice how proud she is to land this role. While Chef Dayanny admitted she is excited about organizing the menus at the Super Bowl, for her, the real excitement comes when the party is over.
The 27-year-old queen of rap, Cardi B, announced to her Twitter followers Sunday that she’s thinking about becoming a politician. “I think I want to be a politician,” the rapper tweeted, adding, “I really love government even tho I don’t agree with Goverment.” Since then, the rapper has expanded on what she’s thinking she’ll do next to make those dreams come true, including returning to school. Since announcing her interest, Cardi B’s already started expanding on the issues that matter to her. She wants to represent the vast majority of Americans who don’t want war. Cardi B wants gun screening to look more like screening to join the military. Cardi B says she believes “we have the right to bear arms,” but she also believes in raising the minimum age limit to own a gun, requiring “mental check-ups” and “proper training” to screen for gun owners.
Of course, Trump supporters have come to drag Cardi B, using coded language to attack her intelligence, education and slut-shame her. Good thing Cardi B is self-secure enough to combat classism.
First, Cardi B says she wants to go back to school “a couple of years” to “shake the table.”
CREDIT: @IAMCARDIB / TWITTER
“I deadass have sooo much ideas that make sense,” Cardi suggested, saying, “I just need a couple of years of school and I can shake the table.” A few minutes later, Cardi B recalled all the war documentaries she’s been watching lately. “No matter how many weapons a country have you need people! How are you trying to go against a country and possibly start a war when this country lacks patriotism? I barely see people claiming they LOVE being American,” she tweeted.
Trump supporter and internet personality Mindy Robinson decided to try Cardi B.
Credit: @IHEARTMINDY / TWITTER
“You’re going to need more school than that. 👌🏻,” Robinson tweeted, along with a proofread version of Cardi B’s tweet and the subversive white supremacy symbol. “Your spaces are off too…but hey, how can we hold you accountable for kindergarten level sh*t, am I right?” Robinson asked of Cardi B.
Cardi took the bait and clapped back with a warning: “don’t want to dog walk you ❤️”
CREDIT: @IAMCARDIB / TWITTER
“Sis your lips ashy and you barely have none …Leave me alone,” Cardi responded to the MAGA right’s internet poster child. “I didn’t insulted your party or your believes so please don’t try me and let’s keep sweet OK….don’t want to dog walk you ❤️,” Cardi added. Of course, Robinson soaked up the attention and responded to essentially assert classism. “I went to college for both American History and Political Science,” Robinson tweeted, adding, “although to be fair…even my cat is more qualified to run for Congress than Cardi B. 👌🏻”
Robinson concluded her tweet once again with the controversial “👌🏻” emoji, which was initially used by a small set of white supremacists who thought the hand gesture symbolized the “w” and “p” in “white power.” It’s since grown into an internet sensation for the right as a way to “troll” liberals. The “👌🏻” is so ubiquitous that it’s easy for someone who uses it maliciously to just say they’re making an “okay” symbol. From MAGA far-right supporters, it’s become a well-protected microaggression to people of color.
In response, Cardi followed through on her word and dog walked the mierda out of Robinson.
CREDIT: @IAMCARDIB / TWITTER
“You really mad cause you stay takin pics like this and mention Trump 20 times a day to get his attention,” Cardi B tweeted back along with a photo of Robinson in an American flag bikini. “HEY! Don’t take your anger out on me cause he don’t wanna fuck you sis 🤷🏽♀️ 😩😩,” Cardi B added. The MAGA-supporting right has been consistent in retweeting photos of Cardi B stripping or wearing bathing suits along with captions like, “she and ole AOC can compare how their cup size is inversely proportionate to their IQs.” A “Women for Trump” account with over 5,000 followers shared the news along with calling the rapper “Low IQ Cardi B.” We don’t even need to explain why “low IQ” is a racist dog whistle.
“Cardi B for Congress” has started a conversation on classism and has already generated campaign banners.
Credit: @PEOPLE4BERNIE / TWITTER
“The irony of suggesting someone couldn’t be a member of congress because of their grammar despite the fact that the president you so vehemently support uses nothing higher than 3rd-grade level diction 🤦🏾♂️grammatical skills ≠ intelligence,” another supporter tweeted at Robinson and Cardi. “Let me tell you something cause every time I post anything political I get attack all type of crazy,” Cardi later tweeted. “If you are a conservative & if you support a opposite party that’s OK( unless you racist)we can get into friendly debates on here voice your opinion… And I’ll voice mines HOWEVER don’t try me and don’t take my kindness for weakness.I BE VIOLATING!!! I don’t really like being on that type of time. We grown! Let’s be grown. Lets teach and learn.”
In conclusion, in the words of another Twitter user, “If Donald Trump is the president of the United States right now I don’t see why Cardi B can’t be a politician.”
