Sprinter Sha’Carri Richardson may have to sit out of the 2020 Tokyo Olympics this summer, but more opportunities are heading her way.
On Tuesday, Richardson appeared in the new Beats by Dre commercial, which not only promoted their new Beats Studio Buds, but also revealed that Kanye West’s album “Donda” would be released this upcoming Friday. West’s single “No Child Left Behind” was used as the background music for the ad.
Beats by Dre showed full support of Richardson despite her suspension from the Olympics by writing “Sha’Carri doesn’t need you to let her do anything,” in the description box on YouTube. Fans also applauded Richardson for landing the gig with the audio products manufacturing company.
One person said, “They thought they did something when they took her out the olympics but the man above had other plans 💪🏾💪🏾…” Another wrote, “when one door closes….what they said again????🔥”
Another fan pointed out an interesting relation between the “Jesus Walks” rapper, Richardson, and both of their mothers. The person wrote, “Isn’t that amazing how his album is named after his mom and shacari can’t run because of an honest mistake of smoking because she lost her mom. This song beautiful.”
Richardson is currently fulfilling her one-month suspension from track competition after testing positive for marijuana. Within hours of the 21-year-old’s fans learning the news, Richardson explained on the “Today” show that her mother’s death was what led her to use marijuana as a coping mechanism. After winning the women’s 100 meters final at the Olympic Trials in June, she revealed that her biological mother had passed away just the week before.
She said later of her suspension that she was “Not making an excuse or looking for any empathy” and that she will “take responsibility for her actions,” but also urged her supporters not to judge her. Before it was reported that Richardson would be banned from competing in the Olympics she had already accepted her punishment and taken part in a counseling program, which reduced her suspension from three months to one. She did not explain what was the cause of her mother’s passing.
As for West, he lost his mother Donda West in 2007, and anyone who’s been a follower of West knows that the Chicago native has taken her loss hard for some time. He’s even gone so far as to blame himself for her death. The day before Donda passed away she had undergone multiple cosmetic surgeries, getting a liposuction, a tummy tuck, and a breast reduction.
In 2008, the coroner told People magazine, “The final manner of death could not be determined. Multiple post-operative factors could have played a role in the death. The exact contribution of each factor could not be determined. There was no evidence of a surgical or anaesthetic misadventure.”
As for the Beats by Dre deal, the specifics of Richardson’s partnership with the company have yet to be unveiled.
