Top 10 Stories of 2009
Top 10 Stories of 2009
2009 is almost a wrap, but it wouldn’t be proper to let it pass without paying homage to the stories that made us ask “Did that really just happen?” Whether it was C.Breezy putting hands on Riri, a runaway balloon watch or Oprah spotted at Marcy projects, much of what was current could be figured out in 140 characters or less on Twitter, the social media site that changed the journalism game in ’09 — but even a Tinkerbellesque trending topic couldn’t keep Michael Jackson alive. We lost a lot of special people this year – but they’ll be remembered. Now lets take a moment to reflect on 2009:
2009 turned Chris Brown and Rihanna into this generation’s poster children for domestic violence when the aftermath of Clive Davis’ pre-Grammy party resulted in an entirely different kind of bash. Chrihanna dominated tabloid covers and the talk show circuit, and kept people talking about herpes, illicit text messages and baby blue bowties.
If you thought his year in the pen marked the end of Michael Vick’s NFL career, well you thought wrong. After serving his time, PETA’s least favorite quarterback headed back to the field to suit up for the Philadelphia Eagles. Guess his dog days are over.
Armed with a bodacious bi-sexual and a bottle of Hennessy, Kanye invoked international ire after crashing the VMA stage as America’s sweetheart Taylor Swift tried to claim her prize. Amber Rose may be forgotten by 2010 however “Imma let you finish but …” might just rank as the most famous last words of the decade.
Many doubted Michael Jackson could recover from huge debt, accusations of child molestation and just plain old eccentricity, but death restored his fortune and legacy perhaps more than any comeback concerts ever could. 2009 saw some of America’s best talents (Farrah Fawcett, Steve McNair, Patrick Swayze, DJ AM) take their last breaths, but only one was the King of Pop.
Jay-Z aligned his Blueprint3 release with an unprecedented branding plan (who didn’t see those HP and Rhapsody commercials?). The result? BP3 became S Dot’s eleventh #1 album, knocking Elvis from his throne. Oh and did I mention he brought Oprah to Marcy projects and keeps President Obama on speed dial? Forget about running “this town,” Hov runs the globe.
If the recession wasn’t bad enough, thousands of Americans were royally ripped off by Bernie Madoff, whose Ponzi scheme literally made off with billions of dollars from investors, proving thievery definitely isn’t just a black thing. Wall Street caught a bailout but Madoff will never make bond, after being sentenced to 150 years behind bars in 2009.
Golf’s great black hope set the tabloids afire after his wife’s Nordic fury sent the Cablinasian in a Cadillac into an Ambien-fueled one-car collision. The fallout from the accident placed Tiger at the epicenter of a 14-sidepiece pussy pileup, sidelining the golf great and costing him endorsements.
One of the strangest hoaxes in American history happened this year, when a Colorado man named Richard Heene succumbed to a thirst for fame so great he’d ask his son Falcon to con an entire nation by faking his disappearance in a runaway balloon. P.S. I’d like my hour of CNN watching back please!
Diddy and Solange helped drive the charge to make Twitter the most popular social media site on the block. It didn’t take long before Chris Brown, Bow Wow and Soulja Boy were proving 140-characters is more than enough to make an ass of yourself.
With Remy Ma, Da Brat and Prodigy already behind bars, lyricists in lockup are not a new phenomenon, but rappers went to jail in droves this year. T.I., Max B, Boosie, Gucci Mane, Lil Wayne and C-Murder were among the MC’s either sentenced or sent packing, while Shyne was freed only to be deported to Belize.
Great list, the only thing I would add would be Glenn Beck’s attack on Van Jones.
twitter and Iranian elections = badass. people using tech for their own empowerment, can’t get any better than that.