Warning: This article contains brief mention of sexual harrasement, mass shootings, and self-immolation.
The year has not slowed down even slightly when it comes to weird event after weird event. So I'm here to help you keep track of it all. Here are 44 wild, noteworthy, and surprising things that happened in February (in order of occurrence).
1. February 1: Universal Music Group pulled their artists' songs from TikTok.
Universal Music Group, otherwise known as UMG, represents big-name artists like Taylor Swift, Drake, and Justin Bieber — all of whom have songs regularly used as trending audios on TikTok. However, at the beginning of the month, UMG and TikTok failed to come to an agreement on contract renewal for the app's use of UMG's artists' songs.
In a statement, UMG said, “TikTok proposed paying our artists and songwriters at a rate that is a fraction of the rate that similarly situated major social platforms pay.”
TikTok retorted with their own statement, claiming that UMG is putting “their own greed above the interests of their artists and songwriters," and added, “TikTok has been able to reach 'artist-first' agreements with every other label and publisher. Clearly, Universal's self-serving actions are not in the best interests of artists, songwriters and fans."
4. February 3: Sweetly Seasoned issued an apology for withholding a tip for a barber and hairstylist that was gifted by TikToker Keith Lee.
If you somehow missed the saga: Keith Lee visited a food truck in Dallas, TX called Sweetly Seasoned and noticed that a barber and hairstylist unaffiliated with the truck were working out of the same parking lot. The barber and hairstylist were friends of the Sweetly Seasoned owner's son, and the hairstylist even helped fill orders that day.
To keep transactions simple, Keith tipped Sweetly $2,000 and asked that the owner hand out an additional $2,000 he'd be tipping through their system —$1,000 for the barber and $1,000 for the hairstylist.
The owner of Sweetly Seasoned, however, initially kept the entire $4,000. It wasn't until later, after much backlash from the internet, that the owner seemingly begrudgingly agreed to issue give the barber and hairstylist their money.
6. February 4: Taylor Swift announced she'll be dropping a new album on April 19 during her Grammy speech.
7. February 4: Speaking of the Grammys, Jay-Z delivered a now-famous speech when accepting the Dr. Dre Global Impact Award. While on stage, he questioned how Beyoncé could have more Grammy wins than any other artist, yet not an Album of the Year award, and said some artists in attendance low-key don't even belong in their categories.
No lies were spoken.
8. February 5: Buckingham Palace announced King Charles III has been diagnosed with cancer.
The palace did not specify what kind of cancer the King has been diagnosed with, nor what stage.
10. February 6: In an unprecedented move, a jury found the mother of the Michigan high school mass shooter, Jennifer Crumbley, guilty on four counts of involuntary manslaughter.
In 2021, Crumbley and her husband gave their 15-year-old son a semi-automatic handgun a few days before the shooting, despite him displaying both behavioral and mental struggles. These notably include an instance where her son texted Crumbley saying that he was "hearing voices and seeing demons," HuffPost reports, and their son texted friends saying his mother laughed in response to requests for help.
Then, just a few hours before the shooting, school administrators called the 15-year-old's parents to discuss drawings he'd created of guns and gunshot victims. Oakland County Prosecutor Karen McDonald said Crumbley not only dismissed these concerns, but also failed to acknowledge that she'd given her son a gun.
Crumbley's son was sentenced to life in prison, and Crumbley has been found guilty of four counts of involuntary manslaughter for the victim's deaths.
11. February 7: Following Katt Williams' explosive interview, Shannon Sharpe interviewed comedian Mo'Nique on his show Club Shay Shay.
Clips from the interview went massively viral, as Mo'Nique called out big names like Tiffany Haddish as well as discrimination in the industry.
View this video on YouTube
12. February 7: Not sure if you even remember her, but Marianne Williamson dropped out the 2024 presidential race.
She has since un-suspended her campaign and is back in the race.
(Girl, let it go.)
17. February 11: Beyoncé broke the internet after announcing she was dropping new music during a Verizon commercial that aired during the Super Bowl.
Queen Bey gave us two songs: "Texas Hold 'Em" and "16 Carriages."
19. February 11: Oh, and since we're talking about the Super Bowl, we may as well note that the Kansas City Chiefs won.
20. February 11: And Travis Kelce + Taylor Swift shared a now-viral post-win kiss.
22. February 14: Outside of ongoing world news, TikToker Reesa Teesa started her now-viral series retelling the story of her marriage to someone she describes as a "pathological liar"
To series is 50 parts and totals about 8 hours of viewing, but it's worth every second.
23. February 15: The entertainment industry was bustling as the Dune: Part 2 cast hit red carpet after red carpet. One of the most notable looks came from Zendaya, of course, who sported this futuristic getup.
26. February 16: A New York State Supreme Court judge ruled that Donald Trump owed the city over $350 million in damages over fraudulent business practices and he has since been barred from officer or director of a New York corporation for the next three years, HuffPost reports.
28. February 21: The Biden administration canceled federal student loans for about 153,000 borrowers.
“Starting today, the first round of folks who are enrolled in our SAVE student loan repayment plan who have paid their loans for 10 years and borrowed $12,000 or less will have their debt cancelled,” Biden shared in a tweet. “That’s 150,000 Americans and counting. And we’re pushing to relieve more.”
29. February 21: After Timothée Chalamet was lightheartedly criticized for not being as fashionable as Zendaya on the Dune: Part 2 red carpets despite being the lead actor of the films, he and Z showed up in matching outfits.
32. February 21: Last year, several pandas were returned to China from US zoos. But, according to a statement released by the San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance, the cute bears will be making a return to their facility!
34. February 22: It was announced that former talk show host and TV personality Wendy Williams has been diagnosed with frontotemporal dementia and aphasia.
36. February 24: A Willy Wonka "Immersive Chocolate Experience" opened its doors in Glasgow and the event was immediately compared to Fyre Festival.
For a $40 ticket, families expected to enter a warehouse full of recreations designed to look as if they were stepping right into Willy Wonka factory. Instead, the event featured a few dispersed props, a very disgruntled looking chocolatier working at what appears to be a meth lab, and an incredibly creepy character that doesn't appear in any of the films.
42. February 28: A weird conspiracy started, claiming Kate Middleton was missing.
This conspiracy stems from the fact that Netizens haven't seen Kate in public for months. The last news about her whereabouts up until this point came from Kensington Palace in early January when a statement said the princess was undergoing a "planned" abdominal surgery.
This has led some to jokingly speculate that the statement is a front and she's actually missing.
43. February 28: Just as this conspiracy was getting started, Kensington palace immediately shut it down.
In a statement, the palace wrote: “Kensington Palace made it clear in January the timelines of the princess’ recovery and we’d only be providing significant updates. That guidance stands.”