A grief stricken mother is speaking out after discovering two of her children died as a result of a fentanyl overdose. Eventhough the overdose was accidental, a year later, the mom still doesn’t have any clarity as to how it happened. All she can comprehend is that two of her children are deceased and they will not becoming home. 

There are few images more jarring than one of a spiritual leader a pastor appearing to lose control in a family confrontation that has since lit up social media and ignited deep, emotional conversations across the internet.

Atlanta streets know better than most: success can shine bright, but trouble finds its way especially when you’re from the South, in the limelight, and moving fast. That tension is playing out once again with Erica Banks, whose latest arrest in DeKalb County has put her career and reputation under a harsh spotlight.

In every corner of the sports world, talent, strategy, and leadership determine who succeeds. Yet when it comes to coaching, the playing field remains uneven. Men can coach both men’s and women’s teams without anyone questioning their qualifications. Their authority is assumed, their presence is expected. But when women pursue those same opportunities especially in men’s sports their competence is debated, their credibility challenged, and their leadership treated as an exception rather than the norm.

There’s a bitter irony to the timing: educators, parents, and students across DeKalb County were preparing for another school year full of promise, only to be jolted by the news that Superintendent Devon Horton would resign amid a federal indictment. A man charged with running a kickback scheme in a previous school district is now, by default, leaving a system that relies—above all—on the fragile currency of public trust. 

In the heart of Atlanta, under the bright lights of State Farm Arena, something unthinkable unfolded: during what was meant to be a celebratory gathering of prayer and worship, a contingent of self-identified Hebrew Israelites stormed the premises or at least surrounded and disrupted the event  challenging the leaders of 2819 Church, accusing them of false teaching, and provoking shock, tension, and a reckoning over what public religion looks like in 2025.

Another weekend meant to celebrate college life and community spirit at South Carolina State University (SCSU) ended in tragedy. The South Carolina Law Enforcement Division (SLED) has charged a man in connection with one of two separate shootings that occurred on campus Saturday night — incidents that left one person dead and others injured.

This week, news broke that 100 troops will be deployed to Chicago, while Memphis, Tennessee, is bracing for the possibility of federal troops on its streets. Against this backdrop, Atlanta officials are working behind the scenes to send a clear message to Washington: Atlanta doesn’t need occupation.

More than two years after a fatal night shook Tuscaloosa, former Alabama basketball player Darius Miles is finally set to stand trial. Jury selection is scheduled to begin Dec. 1 in Alabama Circuit Court, where Miles will answer to a capital murder charge stemming from the January 2023 shooting death of 23-year-old Jamea Harris.

The death of Miguel Ángel García-Hernández is more than a family tragedy — it is an indictment of how vulnerable lives are treated inside America’s immigration system.

Last weekend, five Black immigrants three Nigerians and two Gambians — were deported from the United States even though federal judges had granted them legal protection from removal. Some had “withholding of removal” orders under the Immigration and Nationality Act; others had “deferrals of removal” under the U.N. Convention Against Torture. Both forms of relief mean U.S. courts have decided that deporting the individual would likely result in persecution or torture abroad.

At Atlanta Beatz, we celebrate the best of Georgia’s culture, but we also believe it’s our duty to call out injustices and hold institutions accountable. Last week, at a high school volleyball match between Whitewater Valley High and LaGrange High School, that responsibility became painfully clear