Captain's Log
What up thanks for checking the Blog out. It's not all about me and my music but it is about everything under the sun. Feel free to speak your mind because I know I will.
What up thanks for checking the Blog out. It's not all about me and my music but it is about everything under the sun. Feel free to speak your mind because I know I will.
Lost Soul
Fri, 3rd December, 2010
I’m getting old beats ready for the Lost Soul beat CD. Not sure if I’ll do a lot to it right as far as looking to break things down and add original songs to it. But I will be putting it down by the end of the year.
Get promo stuff right
Fri, 19th November, 2010
Been doing Pics and getting things straight for the cover and still will do the videos this weekend as well. The recording aspect has taken a slight turn, a good one I need to state. I ran across more harder beats and it hit me to do what I do to them, still no real battle stuff but something good as well. Everything is moving along ok so far. I should be posting stuff next week sometime.
Starting over completely
Wed, 8th September, 2010
Well 1 my computer crashed and I lost mad beats, samples, rip albums and software. I did back the albums and mixtapes up, as for ALL the beats many, damn near all were still work in progress type stuff. I know I should been backing stuff up but I really got caught up in way too many things on other fronts. So for now I will be loading everything up again and making new beats and still recording the mixtape and mixtape albums.
Mad beats and samples gone but like I said I still have the albums as well as the zips so it is what it is. I’ll be up late nights now for sure. I’m built for this so I’m really back my shit.
Mad beats and samples gone but like I said I still have the albums as well as the zips so it is what it is. I’ll be up late nights now for sure. I’m built for this so I’m really back my shit.
H.O.M.E Sick
Fri, 3rd September, 2010
So I’m working on a mixtape called H.O.M.E that will have original beats and I’m working on getting 0 (0&0) some tracks too. Before I drop that I figured I would do the more traditional mixtape called H.O.M.E Sick. That will be industry instrumentals driven and if I can get 0 on that I will. So far I’ve recorded a few tracks here and there for both mixtapes. I feel like I’m back on my grind wit the bars and I’m going back the crib beat wise. I’m looking to get that grimy 90’s pre Diddy & Mase vibe back. That sound really has never left as I listen to satellite radio and that sound is still here in Hip Hop.
Still getting things in order
Sat, 21st August, 2010
I been putting together beats these last few weeks for either another beat cd or to record. I really need to record and now that i have a link that works for the Commonwealth Movie Trailer Mixtape I'll put more time into pushing that.
Back on my grind
Fri, 23rd July, 2010
I know I haven't on this site or even maintaining and updating it as of late. All that is over I'm back on my grind so things will start to shift and change and look better.
Disrespectful Outburst
Sun, 20th September, 2009
So I missed the Presidents address on television and thought I’d look it up and check it out. I heard the hoopla about the outburst Joe Wilson pulled off. Now first off I have really went out of my way to say shit isn’t race motivated and would defend that stance to anyone no matter what race they were, but it’s getting harder and harder to do.
I don’t understand who would even begin to defend Mr. Wilson. One reason being no one said he should clap on every big moment the President says something meaningful but to shout out is a blatant act of disrespect. I love how all these Obama haters seem to forget all the comments we as a country swallowed while Bush took us through mountains of bullshit. If Wilson really was against what Obama was saying he could go to a news feed afterwards and post his thoughts, trust me it would get around by the morning. I know that Sen. James Webb after one of Bush’s speeches was quoted as saying “The president took us into this war recklessly”. And most Democrats who had issues and weren’t afraid of the backlash spoke up too, just not during the speeches given by the President Bush. So screaming like a bitch about the possibility of immigrants getting health care somehow is more important than men and women who are serving our nation, losing their lives over the bullshit reasons from the last administration that we are now becoming aware of? No one had an outburst during those speeches! Sure the camera would cut to certain people to get reactions, and those politicians were aware enough to keep a straight face. Matter of fact those who will try to defend the outburst are going to be the same ones who would have screamed treason if it had happened to Bush. So what is it now? Now we have this random act towards our President that no one considers treason? Is it because he is a black President? MoDo (Maureen Dowd New York Times columnist) said it best about not just the outburst but those in support of it, “Some people just can’t believe a black man is president and will never accept it.” And as of now Wilson has apologized to Obama for the outburst but the fire has started already. There T-shirts in support the outburst as well as some politicians who have tried to mollify the outburst with statements aboutWilson being a spirited man. All people from the South or Midwest, who make remarks concerning Obama come away as racist, and yes stereotyping comes in to play but with our history you just aren’t completely guessing all the time when you think racism.
The problem is the republican base has no real legs anymore and every “out there” method is supposed to somehow jump start the party. I can hear someone now on a Sunday talking heads at some roundtable saying it was a spark of motivation to look forward to the mid term elections in some rural area in the Midwest. The bad thing about this is between the racist, southern NASCAR dads and the suburban conservatives of Middle America crowd are becoming out numbered heavily with each by what many analysts have stated since the last election. And as much as this outburst may please a few people, the country as a whole rather agreeing with the argument or not, will agree that it was totally uncalled for. Why? Because there is a certain kind of respect you give the President of the United States. A great deal of respect you give the halls of Congress, this wasn’t just disrespectful to our President but also our Congress and the people. We showed that respect for the last President when we guided us into a senseless war and those who came before him. Actually we really haven’t seen crazy ass outbursts during an address speech in our modern time. One thing was for certain, those who spoke out in such a manner in the past were put in their place by journalists and the public in general. I can only hope that same respect is put into play in these days and times.
I don’t understand who would even begin to defend Mr. Wilson. One reason being no one said he should clap on every big moment the President says something meaningful but to shout out is a blatant act of disrespect. I love how all these Obama haters seem to forget all the comments we as a country swallowed while Bush took us through mountains of bullshit. If Wilson really was against what Obama was saying he could go to a news feed afterwards and post his thoughts, trust me it would get around by the morning. I know that Sen. James Webb after one of Bush’s speeches was quoted as saying “The president took us into this war recklessly”. And most Democrats who had issues and weren’t afraid of the backlash spoke up too, just not during the speeches given by the President Bush. So screaming like a bitch about the possibility of immigrants getting health care somehow is more important than men and women who are serving our nation, losing their lives over the bullshit reasons from the last administration that we are now becoming aware of? No one had an outburst during those speeches! Sure the camera would cut to certain people to get reactions, and those politicians were aware enough to keep a straight face. Matter of fact those who will try to defend the outburst are going to be the same ones who would have screamed treason if it had happened to Bush. So what is it now? Now we have this random act towards our President that no one considers treason? Is it because he is a black President? MoDo (Maureen Dowd New York Times columnist) said it best about not just the outburst but those in support of it, “Some people just can’t believe a black man is president and will never accept it.” And as of now Wilson has apologized to Obama for the outburst but the fire has started already. There T-shirts in support the outburst as well as some politicians who have tried to mollify the outburst with statements aboutWilson being a spirited man. All people from the South or Midwest, who make remarks concerning Obama come away as racist, and yes stereotyping comes in to play but with our history you just aren’t completely guessing all the time when you think racism.
The problem is the republican base has no real legs anymore and every “out there” method is supposed to somehow jump start the party. I can hear someone now on a Sunday talking heads at some roundtable saying it was a spark of motivation to look forward to the mid term elections in some rural area in the Midwest. The bad thing about this is between the racist, southern NASCAR dads and the suburban conservatives of Middle America crowd are becoming out numbered heavily with each by what many analysts have stated since the last election. And as much as this outburst may please a few people, the country as a whole rather agreeing with the argument or not, will agree that it was totally uncalled for. Why? Because there is a certain kind of respect you give the President of the United States. A great deal of respect you give the halls of Congress, this wasn’t just disrespectful to our President but also our Congress and the people. We showed that respect for the last President when we guided us into a senseless war and those who came before him. Actually we really haven’t seen crazy ass outbursts during an address speech in our modern time. One thing was for certain, those who spoke out in such a manner in the past were put in their place by journalists and the public in general. I can only hope that same respect is put into play in these days and times.
Will the real DJs please stand up?
Fri, 18th September, 2009
So I was talking to Ms. Nicolina about Dj’s and mix tapes and how people don’t know the realness of it all anymore .There are way too many formats with these labels attached to them. I always known that but when we (Ms. Nicolina and I ) were joking on those who didn’t know what made a Dj Clue mix tape different from a say Dj Jazzy Jeff mix tape, it made me think about the differences between the labels all over again.
First off there are traditional mix tapes, like the ones lovers make for themselves and love ones, and those party mix tapes with all the best party tracks on them. However, when it comes to Hip Hop it was a simple can’t get it confused title of a mix tape. You have a fake mix tape which was seen like going to a party with no Dj and playing the radio…That’s fucking corny. So you had to have some skills on the turntables, no one was asking a guy to be the best just do enough of a good job to not be joked. A lot of times your song selection played a big roll in not having to be Babu or Dj Scratch on the turntables. Just know when to blend or cut the next song in. Because that’s what makes a real mix tape, the Djs skills when it comes to cutting and scratching and just having the imagination to make effortless blends. You could give 5 Djs back in the day the same playlist and each Dj would rock the shit different and unique than the last person. The art of Djing was just the realest back then.
Somewhere we lost the sense of mix tapes, fuck it I know when… Clue. Yes Clue fucked the game completely up. He started out with little scratches here and there and then saw that as long as he had new shit and by mix tape standards “exclusive tracks”, skills were not needed. As he became more of a household name doing this, and other Djs who were more into the traditional role seem to have gotten lost in the growing pool of Clue type Djs, the mix tape game switched for the worst.
Now if you go to mix tape websites most of the top selling mix tapes have no skills shown at all. It’s some dude or chick talking way too much with sound effects popping off as one song plays behind the other. That by Hip Hop definition isn’t a mix tape and those making them aren’t Djs. Those people, who do blend tapes are BLENDERS, call them that please. We know you have sat around and switched pitches and cut and pasted shit to make it fit and work to go with the beat, but you’re not a Dj just cause you did that. Trust me it’s cool to hear them but it’s not the same as a live blend being heard on the radio or in a club that has been practiced for hours to days, sometimes weeks to perfection by those mastering the art of being Dj.
It’s funny I saw a Roc Raida video on youtube and he was doing his thing, but I didn’t see a gang of what, by looks alone, would be Hip Hop heads watching. I read a review of a Primo mix tape and saw people hating that he was cutting too much. To Dj is an art in itself, it is a back to basic knowledge to take two turntables and turn them into instruments. The art of Djing itself has many levels to it. What the Beat Junkies do and Scribbles and many other do is like battle rappers. Sure you want to hear them battle all day and see how fresh they are with their spontaneity, but you wouldn’t buy their CDs. Then there are the Jazzy Jeff and Kid Capri type dudes who do tours on the turntables like Grandmaster Flash did and still does I take it. You’d buy a mix tape from them and Flex when you can. It’s why “60 Minutes of Funk” was so popular before they started just playing song and letting rappers freestyle. It’s like when BET did the Jam Master Jay tribute, they got Primo, Kid Capri, Jazzy Jeff and Grandmaster Flash to do their thing. Why? Because they were real DJs and popular of course, but also because the other popular so called Djs can’t cut and scratch. If you said you knew a Dj back in the day, that’s what that meant, not he has a gang of songs that he put on a CD for you.
Rappers saying mix tape, stop, we need a new word. Going in and recording over industry beats or having songs just play behind one another doesn’t give you the right to say mix tape. I played that game too and hated it. I would always try to make my crew mix tapes stand out from the others out there. The last few mix tapes I’ve done, I did do cuts and scratches and a few blends to make it a real mix tape. Shit I make mix tapes and love the thrill of a routine I thought of and tried and someone is feeling the way it flows. So out of respect for REAL Djs, step your game up or drop those letters from your names.
First off there are traditional mix tapes, like the ones lovers make for themselves and love ones, and those party mix tapes with all the best party tracks on them. However, when it comes to Hip Hop it was a simple can’t get it confused title of a mix tape. You have a fake mix tape which was seen like going to a party with no Dj and playing the radio…That’s fucking corny. So you had to have some skills on the turntables, no one was asking a guy to be the best just do enough of a good job to not be joked. A lot of times your song selection played a big roll in not having to be Babu or Dj Scratch on the turntables. Just know when to blend or cut the next song in. Because that’s what makes a real mix tape, the Djs skills when it comes to cutting and scratching and just having the imagination to make effortless blends. You could give 5 Djs back in the day the same playlist and each Dj would rock the shit different and unique than the last person. The art of Djing was just the realest back then.
Somewhere we lost the sense of mix tapes, fuck it I know when… Clue. Yes Clue fucked the game completely up. He started out with little scratches here and there and then saw that as long as he had new shit and by mix tape standards “exclusive tracks”, skills were not needed. As he became more of a household name doing this, and other Djs who were more into the traditional role seem to have gotten lost in the growing pool of Clue type Djs, the mix tape game switched for the worst.
Now if you go to mix tape websites most of the top selling mix tapes have no skills shown at all. It’s some dude or chick talking way too much with sound effects popping off as one song plays behind the other. That by Hip Hop definition isn’t a mix tape and those making them aren’t Djs. Those people, who do blend tapes are BLENDERS, call them that please. We know you have sat around and switched pitches and cut and pasted shit to make it fit and work to go with the beat, but you’re not a Dj just cause you did that. Trust me it’s cool to hear them but it’s not the same as a live blend being heard on the radio or in a club that has been practiced for hours to days, sometimes weeks to perfection by those mastering the art of being Dj.
It’s funny I saw a Roc Raida video on youtube and he was doing his thing, but I didn’t see a gang of what, by looks alone, would be Hip Hop heads watching. I read a review of a Primo mix tape and saw people hating that he was cutting too much. To Dj is an art in itself, it is a back to basic knowledge to take two turntables and turn them into instruments. The art of Djing itself has many levels to it. What the Beat Junkies do and Scribbles and many other do is like battle rappers. Sure you want to hear them battle all day and see how fresh they are with their spontaneity, but you wouldn’t buy their CDs. Then there are the Jazzy Jeff and Kid Capri type dudes who do tours on the turntables like Grandmaster Flash did and still does I take it. You’d buy a mix tape from them and Flex when you can. It’s why “60 Minutes of Funk” was so popular before they started just playing song and letting rappers freestyle. It’s like when BET did the Jam Master Jay tribute, they got Primo, Kid Capri, Jazzy Jeff and Grandmaster Flash to do their thing. Why? Because they were real DJs and popular of course, but also because the other popular so called Djs can’t cut and scratch. If you said you knew a Dj back in the day, that’s what that meant, not he has a gang of songs that he put on a CD for you.
Rappers saying mix tape, stop, we need a new word. Going in and recording over industry beats or having songs just play behind one another doesn’t give you the right to say mix tape. I played that game too and hated it. I would always try to make my crew mix tapes stand out from the others out there. The last few mix tapes I’ve done, I did do cuts and scratches and a few blends to make it a real mix tape. Shit I make mix tapes and love the thrill of a routine I thought of and tried and someone is feeling the way it flows. So out of respect for REAL Djs, step your game up or drop those letters from your names.
Jay stay paid
Fri, 18th September, 2009
I got the new Dilla joint and can’t front I been rocking since I got it. I’m not some dick rider of the last 6 yrs guy, I been down with the sound since I bought the “It’s A Party” single by Busta. It’s crazy cause I say it to everyone I bought it for “Ill Vibe” aand to get the acapella, I wanted the line “My rhymes create life like the birds and the bees” cut in a hook. But to get to that you had to play that whole side and the next version was the Dilla remix, not named that just he was behind it as well as Tip And Ali, and it was so sick. I’ve been looking for it online since I left those crates in Va. I remember when me and a former friend were tight he came thru and I played it and he went crazy, his production style was on some Dilla Tip type shit so it was over at that point for him keeping cool. But after that I hunted any remix with production credits going to the Ummah, might be wrong it’s been over 10 years since I seen the name.
So fast forward and Dilla passes and it seems everyone is a fan. The thing that struck me was he was getting gritty later on down the road, I noticed it on Commons “Like Water for Chocolate” album, which is in those crates that and the instrumental album…DAMN. But on Donuts I was amazed at the shit he flipped and on this “Jay Stay Paid” I was blown away but what he flipped. Pete Rock, the one producer he gave a gang of love to, mixed and took care of this project in beautiful fashion.
So fast forward and Dilla passes and it seems everyone is a fan. The thing that struck me was he was getting gritty later on down the road, I noticed it on Commons “Like Water for Chocolate” album, which is in those crates that and the instrumental album…DAMN. But on Donuts I was amazed at the shit he flipped and on this “Jay Stay Paid” I was blown away but what he flipped. Pete Rock, the one producer he gave a gang of love to, mixed and took care of this project in beautiful fashion.
Lost Chamber of Black Music
Fri, 18th September, 2009
So I been rocking the Wu new “Chamber Music” for a week now while going to work and it’s a lot better than people give it credit for. It’s at the point now where the Wu are in the Nas zone of criticisms, we judge them by their older stuff. And just like “Untitled” you have to throw that mind frame out the window. This not complete album, for many reasons, is better than “8 Diagrams”. BTW this is not some review just stating the fact I like this way better than a few of their last releases.
First off the most catching piece of work here is the “music”, yeah music… You know where bands and musicians play instruments? We get that here on the “Chamber Music”, fuck at the end of the day the band, Brooklyn’s own The Revelations, are the sole stars of this endeavor. Yes Deck as far as members go is the truth here (biases alert coming), but that’s cause Gza is no where to be found on the outing. And not to sound like a born again fan which I have odd to say become, Sean Price (of Heltah Skeltah fame) has the sickest bars on here. Mega as well as Masta Ace too have outstanding verses on here, doing way better than AZ, G. Rap, Havoc and M.O.P. Oh, and mad respect has to be given to Lil Fame for putting this together, it shows not only does he have a great since of respect for the Wu but for those of his generation (the 90’s). That kind of love for what other artist outside of your crew do and or has done is often lost in today’s Hip Hop.
Now again the to the music, it feels good to say that given even our urban none rap has seem to stop having musicians, notice I never said R&B or singers hmm? Which is why we need to catch up with Mr. West and smack the fuck out of this fool? As you may or may not know he is pushing to get drum machines in school to help the youth practice making basic drum patterns and laying strange noises on top of it and all the while reducing the out put of “Music”. He has been saying some shit about we could help more kids be the next Soulja Boy??? Again find him and beat the shit out of him! Now what bugs me about this is here is a man who kicks it with real musicians, I take it can at the least tickle the ivory’s, and he wants to have the youth deal with drum machines. The history sad enough of Hip Hops marriage to the drum machine is simple, the poor inner city youth back then had a lot of shit stripped from their schools and most were gang members or some shit. Excuse, not at all because if I want the youth be the next someone it would be Barry White. He was a Gang member who stopped and “Composed” most if not all his music in his hay day. James brown did so too with what I was told by older folks a 5th to 6th grade education. Now do I think either one of those men can write a note of music, fuck no, if they did then we should really step our level of gratitude up by the way, but they thought of the arrangements. It’s what makes Pete Rock and Dre and many other Hip Hop GREAT producers different from these half ass dudes now. To take seconds of various older songs and manipulate them to make another song all together is genius. We should be encouraging schools as well as community centers to teach inner city youth how to play instruments. If the “Chamber Music” album does nothing else it shows that we can stop sampling and still have real melodies and riffs and just a tight arranged musical experience thanks to bands playing behind us. It’s worked for The Roots forever and Common as well as Jay and Mos do it. It’s kind of like “Chamber Music” opens that door to in some way go back but still move forward. I’m a sample junkie and I loved when a friend of mine played a guitar riff I cut and chopped exactly the way I put it together on my beat. It shows all we have to do is think of it and it can be played.
Before I go please note someone, maybe Fame, should have stopped the Rza with those damn Rzaludes. He could have at least let the members of the Wu who didn’t spit at all on this outing do an interlude and saved face. Just a thought because that really becomes a drag listening to the Rza gloat about what I’m still trying to figure out, not really that’s why we have skip buttons. Still it’s a great joint now I can look forward for OB4CL 2.
First off the most catching piece of work here is the “music”, yeah music… You know where bands and musicians play instruments? We get that here on the “Chamber Music”, fuck at the end of the day the band, Brooklyn’s own The Revelations, are the sole stars of this endeavor. Yes Deck as far as members go is the truth here (biases alert coming), but that’s cause Gza is no where to be found on the outing. And not to sound like a born again fan which I have odd to say become, Sean Price (of Heltah Skeltah fame) has the sickest bars on here. Mega as well as Masta Ace too have outstanding verses on here, doing way better than AZ, G. Rap, Havoc and M.O.P. Oh, and mad respect has to be given to Lil Fame for putting this together, it shows not only does he have a great since of respect for the Wu but for those of his generation (the 90’s). That kind of love for what other artist outside of your crew do and or has done is often lost in today’s Hip Hop.
Now again the to the music, it feels good to say that given even our urban none rap has seem to stop having musicians, notice I never said R&B or singers hmm? Which is why we need to catch up with Mr. West and smack the fuck out of this fool? As you may or may not know he is pushing to get drum machines in school to help the youth practice making basic drum patterns and laying strange noises on top of it and all the while reducing the out put of “Music”. He has been saying some shit about we could help more kids be the next Soulja Boy??? Again find him and beat the shit out of him! Now what bugs me about this is here is a man who kicks it with real musicians, I take it can at the least tickle the ivory’s, and he wants to have the youth deal with drum machines. The history sad enough of Hip Hops marriage to the drum machine is simple, the poor inner city youth back then had a lot of shit stripped from their schools and most were gang members or some shit. Excuse, not at all because if I want the youth be the next someone it would be Barry White. He was a Gang member who stopped and “Composed” most if not all his music in his hay day. James brown did so too with what I was told by older folks a 5th to 6th grade education. Now do I think either one of those men can write a note of music, fuck no, if they did then we should really step our level of gratitude up by the way, but they thought of the arrangements. It’s what makes Pete Rock and Dre and many other Hip Hop GREAT producers different from these half ass dudes now. To take seconds of various older songs and manipulate them to make another song all together is genius. We should be encouraging schools as well as community centers to teach inner city youth how to play instruments. If the “Chamber Music” album does nothing else it shows that we can stop sampling and still have real melodies and riffs and just a tight arranged musical experience thanks to bands playing behind us. It’s worked for The Roots forever and Common as well as Jay and Mos do it. It’s kind of like “Chamber Music” opens that door to in some way go back but still move forward. I’m a sample junkie and I loved when a friend of mine played a guitar riff I cut and chopped exactly the way I put it together on my beat. It shows all we have to do is think of it and it can be played.
Before I go please note someone, maybe Fame, should have stopped the Rza with those damn Rzaludes. He could have at least let the members of the Wu who didn’t spit at all on this outing do an interlude and saved face. Just a thought because that really becomes a drag listening to the Rza gloat about what I’m still trying to figure out, not really that’s why we have skip buttons. Still it’s a great joint now I can look forward for OB4CL 2.
Funny People
Sun, 13th September, 2009
So I saw the Adam Sandler movie Funny People, I have to say it was way better than I thought it would be. I’m not an Adam Sandler fan myself so the film made me really respect his grind. Not to say it’s Oscar caliber or anything, but I will say it was impressive watching homie do his thing. This could be the start of becoming a gutsy actor in my book. I saw the flick where he looked like Dylan, which now that’s Sandler is older he does look a lot like Dylan anyway, in the movie where he played opposite Don Cheadle as an old college roommate. Hated that flick I didn’t really see where it was necessary at all. But this film really had nice transition abilities to it for Sandler, it was funny and then it went serious and he kept up with it. Maybe just maybe this could be that film that you take him serious as an actor, many comedians have done it well in the past. Whoopi (Color Purple), Jamie Foxx (Ray or Redemption: The Stan Tookie Williams Story depending on if you saw that), Janeane Garofalo ( a gang of TV dramas where she held her own and made me forget she was a comedain, and with wearing business suites I realized she has some shape to her) and a nice list of Robin Williams films. Yes Mork has a great catalog of movies under his belt, the latest being The Worlds Greatest Dad. It’s a good movie, don’t let the title fool you. Or will Adam make this chance to become a deeper actor fall and make a shit load of bad flicks like Eddie has done after Dream Girls? I would love to see he and Eddie go further in their careers to be honest with you, but time will tell I guess.
So not reviewing this movie at all, it is a good movie people trust me when I say that. Now that is out the way let us get started with the realness of this post.
I came away from it relating completely with the George character, it was like we were one at some point. No I’m not sick, I don’t think anyway, but in the loneliness he felt throughout the movie. There is a part where Ira (Seth Rogen) asks why he doesn’t tell friends about his sickness. George lets him know there are no friends in the entertainment world only associates. Biggie said the same shit in an interview during the whole beef with Pac, which is why that beef fucked with him so much, because Pac was a friend beyond the music shit. But both are right with that thinking, I get texts and emails all the time about what they recording and if I’m recording. It makes remember why I never let too many people know I was an artist, those people were my escape from the BS. I suppose. There’s a part where he watched old movies and stand up footage it was totally me listening to old CDs of myself and my crew and wondering what happened? I use to go in the lab and record 8 to 10 songs from 11am to 8pm with a gang of bull shitting between songs, now I’ve been planning to record for the last month and still have only gotten to tracking three beats out. The way George went back to his roots and did the whole stand up thing is kind of where I am in a way. The difference is my roots are the streets, and MCs don’t spit on the block anymore. You can’t even be in a room where a sick beat comes on and get a nice cipher going these days. In a way it doesn’t matter most rap dudes suck and that’s when they give you their written shit. Plus most dudes love to battle, me been there done that moved on. Going to open mic to just get that feel of live shit has now turned into some garbage ass crew literally having the members go one at a time taking the night up with a corny ass squad of clowns.
His frustration with his illness and the medicine they gave him giving him pains while fighting his illness is me and the pain of this piece of shit city with my medicine being memories of the life lived before KC. People always ask why don’t I just go back home to Bad Newz? Well it’s changed a lot and with those changes come the hard reality that I have to deal with the now. It’s like when George saw the love of his life with her kids and they kicked it together that day to have the cold hard facts of the truth slap him when her husband showed up. This isn’t Bad Newz and the comradery between artists is all but dead. So now I’m just left doing me working thru the ills of my now while still driving ahead. Not a happy ending, but the movie didn’t have one either really. It truly was a life type flick.
So not reviewing this movie at all, it is a good movie people trust me when I say that. Now that is out the way let us get started with the realness of this post.
I came away from it relating completely with the George character, it was like we were one at some point. No I’m not sick, I don’t think anyway, but in the loneliness he felt throughout the movie. There is a part where Ira (Seth Rogen) asks why he doesn’t tell friends about his sickness. George lets him know there are no friends in the entertainment world only associates. Biggie said the same shit in an interview during the whole beef with Pac, which is why that beef fucked with him so much, because Pac was a friend beyond the music shit. But both are right with that thinking, I get texts and emails all the time about what they recording and if I’m recording. It makes remember why I never let too many people know I was an artist, those people were my escape from the BS. I suppose. There’s a part where he watched old movies and stand up footage it was totally me listening to old CDs of myself and my crew and wondering what happened? I use to go in the lab and record 8 to 10 songs from 11am to 8pm with a gang of bull shitting between songs, now I’ve been planning to record for the last month and still have only gotten to tracking three beats out. The way George went back to his roots and did the whole stand up thing is kind of where I am in a way. The difference is my roots are the streets, and MCs don’t spit on the block anymore. You can’t even be in a room where a sick beat comes on and get a nice cipher going these days. In a way it doesn’t matter most rap dudes suck and that’s when they give you their written shit. Plus most dudes love to battle, me been there done that moved on. Going to open mic to just get that feel of live shit has now turned into some garbage ass crew literally having the members go one at a time taking the night up with a corny ass squad of clowns.
His frustration with his illness and the medicine they gave him giving him pains while fighting his illness is me and the pain of this piece of shit city with my medicine being memories of the life lived before KC. People always ask why don’t I just go back home to Bad Newz? Well it’s changed a lot and with those changes come the hard reality that I have to deal with the now. It’s like when George saw the love of his life with her kids and they kicked it together that day to have the cold hard facts of the truth slap him when her husband showed up. This isn’t Bad Newz and the comradery between artists is all but dead. So now I’m just left doing me working thru the ills of my now while still driving ahead. Not a happy ending, but the movie didn’t have one either really. It truly was a life type flick.
Comic review
Sun, 13th September, 2009
So I’m thinking of getting The Watchmen. Well, I am getting it just not sure when to get it. Should I do it now or wait for the “supreme version” in December? While looking online at my favorite place for deals and constant amusement, Amazon.com, I checked the reviews to get the vibe of the movie from other people. One thing I love about Amazon reviewers is that they are true blue Americans. No one on earth is as arrogant and self absorbed as us. We’re the only people who get pissed when foreigners can’t speak the language, go to other countries (not even trying to learn those languages), and get pissed no one speaks English because again they... well you know. Back to Amazon, people will admit they don’t like comics or comic movies or whatever genre of entertainment it may be and feel good about shitting on the product from an “I’m not into this” mind frame. I take it these are the same people who protest against porn, gay marriage and a host of other shit. Why? Because since they aren’t into it or live that lifestyle they feel it’s less important to the bigger universe (bigger universe being their small minded point of view).
So here’s the point of this post. The Watchmen is a comic movie not like others because of the fact the comic starts off the same way the first scene in the movie does. There really isn’t an origin format like other comic books, where you find out about each character during the book. This is a crazy long ass movie, not as long as the first Lord of The Rings though. It also slows way the fuck down at times, too many times for my taste, but still is better than a lot of comic movies. The look and feel of the movie is one of the best qualities about it however the acting sucks at times. One reason for that is there isn’t a real big name star in it, which saved money for the CGI that’s all over place, 75% of that CGI is on Dr. Manhattan alone. I mean it’s an action comic and I can’t lie for the easily offended by too much violence some shit will totally turn off, not telling you what or when so don’t ask if you’ve not seen it the movie yet. I know I knew a bit about the comic book itself, not a lot of shit mind you, so I went and downloaded the motion comic book as well as the online comic books just to know the characters as well as the plot of the movie.
So I know people don’t think like me, but if you go into a comic book movie knowing you don’t know shit about it and can find source material like the actual comic books themselves and check them out you’re an idiot. So I’m still on Amazon reading reviews about how “it’s not all the heroes we know of today” and “why was it set in the 80’s?” Why worry about it, why not just enjoy the ride? People 300, Constantine, V for Vendetta and even Wanted really didn’t give a true origin set up for every single thing in the beginning. You saw it unfold during the flick. And by the way those ARE comics and that might have been the difference, The Watchmen looked like a comic book and the hype billed it as such, so maybe that is what made the bandwagon crowd so pissed about what they saw. This wasn’t the average comic book movie, this was indeed for those who knew of the comic and with that felt no need to even water shit down and go through the introduction peace like Batman Begins. We all know who Batman is and how he became Batman but if a movie just came on and there he was with no setup some people would still be pissed about it. All I ask is if you’re going to go out and watch or listen to shit for the hype or because it’s considered a classic, know that sometimes you come away being exposed to a gem, but most of the time you’re not going to like the shit and still be a fucking outsider to the world that embraces it.
So here’s the point of this post. The Watchmen is a comic movie not like others because of the fact the comic starts off the same way the first scene in the movie does. There really isn’t an origin format like other comic books, where you find out about each character during the book. This is a crazy long ass movie, not as long as the first Lord of The Rings though. It also slows way the fuck down at times, too many times for my taste, but still is better than a lot of comic movies. The look and feel of the movie is one of the best qualities about it however the acting sucks at times. One reason for that is there isn’t a real big name star in it, which saved money for the CGI that’s all over place, 75% of that CGI is on Dr. Manhattan alone. I mean it’s an action comic and I can’t lie for the easily offended by too much violence some shit will totally turn off, not telling you what or when so don’t ask if you’ve not seen it the movie yet. I know I knew a bit about the comic book itself, not a lot of shit mind you, so I went and downloaded the motion comic book as well as the online comic books just to know the characters as well as the plot of the movie.
So I know people don’t think like me, but if you go into a comic book movie knowing you don’t know shit about it and can find source material like the actual comic books themselves and check them out you’re an idiot. So I’m still on Amazon reading reviews about how “it’s not all the heroes we know of today” and “why was it set in the 80’s?” Why worry about it, why not just enjoy the ride? People 300, Constantine, V for Vendetta and even Wanted really didn’t give a true origin set up for every single thing in the beginning. You saw it unfold during the flick. And by the way those ARE comics and that might have been the difference, The Watchmen looked like a comic book and the hype billed it as such, so maybe that is what made the bandwagon crowd so pissed about what they saw. This wasn’t the average comic book movie, this was indeed for those who knew of the comic and with that felt no need to even water shit down and go through the introduction peace like Batman Begins. We all know who Batman is and how he became Batman but if a movie just came on and there he was with no setup some people would still be pissed about it. All I ask is if you’re going to go out and watch or listen to shit for the hype or because it’s considered a classic, know that sometimes you come away being exposed to a gem, but most of the time you’re not going to like the shit and still be a fucking outsider to the world that embraces it.
Jay Z: Architectural Design
Wed, 9th September, 2009
There are a few Mcs in the game I find myself defending out of pure respect, even when they’ve made major missteps in their music career. Jay at times is in that boat but it’s always by those who don’t know his catalog completely. Me I am a, as bloggers say, a stan of Jay Zs. At one point I had every album (not CD, the vinyl) up to the The Blueprint as well as singles be it from the albums, soundtracks or other projects. If Jay was on it I had it, tried to be like that with the Wu too but all those damn mini-members popped up and shit got crazy.
I remember Jay-Z from an Original Flavor song around 93 or 94. The most memorable line was the end of his verse when he said “J kickin it A rippin it way past Y? I’m so crazy.” From that moment I was like dude is sick, using that whole tongue twisting speed flow shit. Then the next time I heard him was on a Big Daddy Kane song titled, “Show and Prove” that also featured Ol’ Dirty, Shaheem, Scoop( who was one of Big Daddy Kane’s dancers) and Sauce Money. The song sucked despite the line up of dope MCs (minus Scoop), the only dancers I think could ever spit were Kid N Play. That also was when Jay said he had to switch his shit up being rumored as saying his verse was the worse, which has to be bad when a dancer out shines you in your mind. I do know in 94 the classic In My Lifetime dropped and it was the shit on the bricks. I remember seeing the video once on Rap City at Wise Choice crib while he and 0&0 played pool. I kept thinking the video is on a fucking boat with gold bottles? Such a grimy vivid song with, by 94 standards, a tame ass video was a let down but the thing is he was setting up his who image and I was too upset about the let down to even pick up on that shit.
Fast forward and the streets were buzzing with “Dead Presidents” and the B side was the now major hit with “Ain’t No Nigga”. What was so cool about Jay and the whole Roc-A-Fella mystic was how they big dicked Def Jam into giving them a deal. Here was an indie label with just one act who also was a partner in running the label and they had one of the hottest singles not just in New York but all across the board. So when Def Jam wanted to, from what I heard, buy the rights to the song from the label for The Nutty Professor soundtrack they flipped it and said sign us and you can have the song. Not sure if that’s how they got a hold of Foxy but who cares right? Now you have The Roc being backed by Def Jam and they still went very hood with their approach to “Reasonable Doubt”. Preemo, Clark Kent, Ski and former friend Jaz O handled the beats along with a couple unknowns ;nobody produced “Can’t Knock the Hustle” and DJ Irv, yes Mr Murder Inc, produced “Can I Live”. Here’s a guy no one really knew who had two heavy hitters on his debut album and it by no means felt like it was a forced collab like most collaborations did back then. He had Biggie and Mary J along with Foxy, Jaz and Sauce Money on there and it just came off right not just for that time but even now when I hear it.
As of now you have Jay Z as one of Hip Hop’s best MC’s hands down and I’m not sure if those who shit on his music understand that completely or not? I know when I come off with a few shots at Jay it’s out of missing what I know to be the best of him and knowing he still can go there just for some reason chooses not to. You get a lot of this “old” shit thrown around about him as of late. I figure this is from rappers who can’t make songs to get airplay and or fans who are realizing they grew up listening to Jay Z and that makes them feel old in some way. The man still can out spit most of the genre without even really digging for his A game shit and that’s why it was only natural that the only time he found himself in a back and fourth battle, it was with an MC who could really go there, Nas . Everyone else who has taken shots at him has gotten blown out on a mixtape, freestyle or some radio freestyle. Not to really test him again too much, but the Jay and Nas battle will go down as one of the best next, to the Moe Dee and LL for no other reason than it both sides can say they won and both can be viewed as losers.
Jay has had classic shit in his career and a gang of duds to go along side that, but he always managed to come away on his feet. It’s like when the first Blueprint popped off he had a few missteps and that album just erased all those ills. Now saying certain Jay Z albums were not the best is fine but they are still better than most shit that dropped at the same time. I hated the overall tone and vibe of The Dynasty and The Life and Times of S. Carter, but they still were better than a lot of albums that came out around their time of release. It seemed after Blueprint 1 he eased off and you could hear it the second Blueprint and its 2.0 version, which really was one of Jay’s worst in my book. The Black Album will go down as classic because we as fans and casual listeners thought he was leaving the game at that time. Now knowing he didn’t and giving that album a new view, it’s really not that fucking good. And this is to me the bigger start of the “new” problems…production. The Black Album had two Kanye tracks and I think two Just Blaze joints on it too. Now Eminem is not close to the worst producer in the game but his beats are dark and unless your album holds a outlet for the vibe his beats will bring the tone of your overall product down. Whereas with “Renegade” there was a fit because Jay really took The Blueprint and addressed shit, so that song and beat was a welcomed edition. “Moment of Clarity“just seemed too sluggish to come before “99 Problems”. DJ Quik beat was ass too. In fact I after grabbing remixes I find myself totally disappointed in the production of The Black Album and a lot of his later albums fall in the same lane. Jay’s lyrics are as tight if not tighter than anything on his debut album but the beats tend to hold them back. It’s like when he was running with Track Masters, Swiss, and Timberland for a bulk of his beats at one time, pre Blueprint, yeah he could spit but the beats were just awful as fuck. Which sad to say brings me to his 11th album The Blueprint 3. The more I listen the more I see the spit is there, the styles he plays with are at times annoying but it’s the beats I can’t get past. I know I’m in the lane of wanting Clark and Preemo doing beats again or at least a hungry Kanye and Just Blaze. Maybe you need to just get back in the hood and find those hungry beat makers and get that starving artist mental back from what they bring to you Mr. Carter. I know the man still can go there and make us remember why he is one of the greatest to ever do it. Everyone falls off at some point, I think it’s sad his falling off comes by way of his backdrop choices and not his actual lyrical ability. If he continues to go down the drain due to some obligation to these producers it will be sad end to a great MC. I still have my copies of the classic shit and suggest you get yours too.
I remember Jay-Z from an Original Flavor song around 93 or 94. The most memorable line was the end of his verse when he said “J kickin it A rippin it way past Y? I’m so crazy.” From that moment I was like dude is sick, using that whole tongue twisting speed flow shit. Then the next time I heard him was on a Big Daddy Kane song titled, “Show and Prove” that also featured Ol’ Dirty, Shaheem, Scoop( who was one of Big Daddy Kane’s dancers) and Sauce Money. The song sucked despite the line up of dope MCs (minus Scoop), the only dancers I think could ever spit were Kid N Play. That also was when Jay said he had to switch his shit up being rumored as saying his verse was the worse, which has to be bad when a dancer out shines you in your mind. I do know in 94 the classic In My Lifetime dropped and it was the shit on the bricks. I remember seeing the video once on Rap City at Wise Choice crib while he and 0&0 played pool. I kept thinking the video is on a fucking boat with gold bottles? Such a grimy vivid song with, by 94 standards, a tame ass video was a let down but the thing is he was setting up his who image and I was too upset about the let down to even pick up on that shit.
Fast forward and the streets were buzzing with “Dead Presidents” and the B side was the now major hit with “Ain’t No Nigga”. What was so cool about Jay and the whole Roc-A-Fella mystic was how they big dicked Def Jam into giving them a deal. Here was an indie label with just one act who also was a partner in running the label and they had one of the hottest singles not just in New York but all across the board. So when Def Jam wanted to, from what I heard, buy the rights to the song from the label for The Nutty Professor soundtrack they flipped it and said sign us and you can have the song. Not sure if that’s how they got a hold of Foxy but who cares right? Now you have The Roc being backed by Def Jam and they still went very hood with their approach to “Reasonable Doubt”. Preemo, Clark Kent, Ski and former friend Jaz O handled the beats along with a couple unknowns ;nobody produced “Can’t Knock the Hustle” and DJ Irv, yes Mr Murder Inc, produced “Can I Live”. Here’s a guy no one really knew who had two heavy hitters on his debut album and it by no means felt like it was a forced collab like most collaborations did back then. He had Biggie and Mary J along with Foxy, Jaz and Sauce Money on there and it just came off right not just for that time but even now when I hear it.
As of now you have Jay Z as one of Hip Hop’s best MC’s hands down and I’m not sure if those who shit on his music understand that completely or not? I know when I come off with a few shots at Jay it’s out of missing what I know to be the best of him and knowing he still can go there just for some reason chooses not to. You get a lot of this “old” shit thrown around about him as of late. I figure this is from rappers who can’t make songs to get airplay and or fans who are realizing they grew up listening to Jay Z and that makes them feel old in some way. The man still can out spit most of the genre without even really digging for his A game shit and that’s why it was only natural that the only time he found himself in a back and fourth battle, it was with an MC who could really go there, Nas . Everyone else who has taken shots at him has gotten blown out on a mixtape, freestyle or some radio freestyle. Not to really test him again too much, but the Jay and Nas battle will go down as one of the best next, to the Moe Dee and LL for no other reason than it both sides can say they won and both can be viewed as losers.
Jay has had classic shit in his career and a gang of duds to go along side that, but he always managed to come away on his feet. It’s like when the first Blueprint popped off he had a few missteps and that album just erased all those ills. Now saying certain Jay Z albums were not the best is fine but they are still better than most shit that dropped at the same time. I hated the overall tone and vibe of The Dynasty and The Life and Times of S. Carter, but they still were better than a lot of albums that came out around their time of release. It seemed after Blueprint 1 he eased off and you could hear it the second Blueprint and its 2.0 version, which really was one of Jay’s worst in my book. The Black Album will go down as classic because we as fans and casual listeners thought he was leaving the game at that time. Now knowing he didn’t and giving that album a new view, it’s really not that fucking good. And this is to me the bigger start of the “new” problems…production. The Black Album had two Kanye tracks and I think two Just Blaze joints on it too. Now Eminem is not close to the worst producer in the game but his beats are dark and unless your album holds a outlet for the vibe his beats will bring the tone of your overall product down. Whereas with “Renegade” there was a fit because Jay really took The Blueprint and addressed shit, so that song and beat was a welcomed edition. “Moment of Clarity“just seemed too sluggish to come before “99 Problems”. DJ Quik beat was ass too. In fact I after grabbing remixes I find myself totally disappointed in the production of The Black Album and a lot of his later albums fall in the same lane. Jay’s lyrics are as tight if not tighter than anything on his debut album but the beats tend to hold them back. It’s like when he was running with Track Masters, Swiss, and Timberland for a bulk of his beats at one time, pre Blueprint, yeah he could spit but the beats were just awful as fuck. Which sad to say brings me to his 11th album The Blueprint 3. The more I listen the more I see the spit is there, the styles he plays with are at times annoying but it’s the beats I can’t get past. I know I’m in the lane of wanting Clark and Preemo doing beats again or at least a hungry Kanye and Just Blaze. Maybe you need to just get back in the hood and find those hungry beat makers and get that starving artist mental back from what they bring to you Mr. Carter. I know the man still can go there and make us remember why he is one of the greatest to ever do it. Everyone falls off at some point, I think it’s sad his falling off comes by way of his backdrop choices and not his actual lyrical ability. If he continues to go down the drain due to some obligation to these producers it will be sad end to a great MC. I still have my copies of the classic shit and suggest you get yours too.
Anti-Social Affair
Wed, 9th September, 2009
I’ve noticed people saying crazy shit about being social these days, a lot of it is pure bullshit in my opinion. What we have in our society today is a real lack of social skills, despite how someone may tell you other wise it’s true. Remember hearing about old timers who could go anywhere and meet and greet and have friends no matter the background, race or age? I have met more than my share of friends that way and was once in that lane myself in my former life. These people had big paper homies, broke friends, those who still stayed with their moms, a few locked up and just blue collar Joes. Those days are over, now you’re friends or associates have to be just like you. And this is where when people say they are a social person, you find yourself reading between the lines.
I’ve personally seen two examples of this new social world, one example happened to me to be honest. Let’s start with that one shall we? If you know me or just read any of these posts it’s not a surprise about my feelings on Kansas City at all. So when I got here I did the go out and did kick it to meet people thing and the first observation I realized is how shallow people are here. I remember going out and having a conversation with a guy while the NBA Finals were on, that year was when the Heat beat the Mavs to win the championship. Some guy and I started out talking about how we both weren’t big Shaq fans but understood this was that Hall of Fame moment taking three different teams to the Finals and shit. So we really were kicking it, eyeing chicks, talking sports and just taking in the vibe in the bar really. He asked what I did before he even asked my name first sign shit is not right in my book. I told him I worked at FEDEX. The guy, all truth no lie here, got up and never even said shit to me the rest of my time there. I have been in that scenario more than I like to count and at first my thought was KC dudes are gay. Then I noticed that’s really what people do, they ask your place of employment before even trying to know the person you are. The problem with this is that in all sense of the word its anti-social but by today’s lifestyle we don’t call it that at all haven’t figured out the name but it’s not anti-social.
Other example comes from a friend we called O. He got his GED in the 89’, I know this because after he got his GED he went and saw Do The Right Thing and told us the whole movie blow by blow. Anyway he was 17 and got a job working for the city and he was the one who told us of all the benefits being a government employee had and shit, and still works there if I’m not correct. In 2003 he made a big jump in his life, he married his off again on again girlfriend, got promoted a third time and moved out to burbs. That year in the Super Bowl the Eagles played and we went to have the Super Bowl party at his new spot. When we got out the cars he made a smart remark about how we should have all worn the same colors. So we asked why, thinking there was “black hate” in the area, not knowing until he told us there were more blacks than whites there. The problem however was the career path he chose to get in the neighborhood. He said the neighbor we saw used to talk to him until he asked what he did for a living and after that my man O was like the swine flue and shit.
We let this shit happen though, when someone doesn’t kick it around the crowd they should be around, that’s when being anti-social comes into play. If you don’t hangout with the chick who works at Starbucks no one cares, but if you don’t talk to that junior associate of some business downtown then you’re anti-social. I find myself falling in the zone thinking of Ice T lately. He said something about putting kids in a sandbox and with no one to tell them who to talk to they will get along fine and pick friends off of how people are. Now his layout was referring to race but in this situation it works the same for being social because as kids were like that, we hung out with people not because of what their parents did or where they lived but because we liked them and they liked us. Today even that’s gone, people move to be around like minded people such as themselves and call it a community. You see it during election year all the time, a spot where two to four homes have democrat or republican shit out being the minority. Ask someone do they know them and you’ll get no. Why? Because of their politics. Again its anti-social but we let it go because of politics in this case.
Even on social sites there’s a place where it says career and then you see earnings. I’m looking to kick it at clubs, hit a few shows with people into the same music as me, maybe get together at a basketball court or watch a few games. How does my job and wage affect that? Who knows really, but there are those who in their “about me” section it reads like a fucking resume, a resume to have you chill with them. Shit the Craigslist killer got his victims because he wrote out some good shit and was all that along with being a serial killer. That guy would not have gotten anywhere being, say my homie O, working for the city and shit. What we have done is in all honestly turned our country into one large ass high school with clicks at every turn. What used to be people of different backgrounds and beliefs and race connecting has just stopped somewhere? You see it on reality TV, remember how The Real World had some damn near homeless people or gay or just straight lower wage people and the basis was to see them interact with each other? That’s gone you get one person who is supposed to embody all this surrounded by those from the burbs who have it somewhat good. Bad to them is ones a drunk or have a parent who’s a drunk, ones a hoe (male or female), ones a bully and ones a geek-type. Again high school, and we are acting the same way in this country right now. The difference is that we have now just stopped talking to people who aren’t like us at all.
I have started to notice the people who claim they’re social aren’t by no means social, what they are is really people who play it safe. They rarely if at all venture out of their comfort zone to make friends, but tend to ridicule you for not being open to talk to people. Again that is code for talk to people in your same status quo not so much anyone you may find interesting. The truth and sad reality is if people were as social as they claim to be we’d understand one another better. All the stereotyping we do about one another could be reduced as well as these bullshit divide and conquer games politicians play with us. If we really got to know people we would be more open to working something out for healthcare, minimum wage, education and a lot of other shit that could be handled by the citizens first then brought to our government for change. It’s like that townhall meeting shit awhile back, some of those people lived right next to one another and never spoke due to ideologies, and the sad thing is once the bus left the anti-socialness continued as if that day never happened.
I’ve personally seen two examples of this new social world, one example happened to me to be honest. Let’s start with that one shall we? If you know me or just read any of these posts it’s not a surprise about my feelings on Kansas City at all. So when I got here I did the go out and did kick it to meet people thing and the first observation I realized is how shallow people are here. I remember going out and having a conversation with a guy while the NBA Finals were on, that year was when the Heat beat the Mavs to win the championship. Some guy and I started out talking about how we both weren’t big Shaq fans but understood this was that Hall of Fame moment taking three different teams to the Finals and shit. So we really were kicking it, eyeing chicks, talking sports and just taking in the vibe in the bar really. He asked what I did before he even asked my name first sign shit is not right in my book. I told him I worked at FEDEX. The guy, all truth no lie here, got up and never even said shit to me the rest of my time there. I have been in that scenario more than I like to count and at first my thought was KC dudes are gay. Then I noticed that’s really what people do, they ask your place of employment before even trying to know the person you are. The problem with this is that in all sense of the word its anti-social but by today’s lifestyle we don’t call it that at all haven’t figured out the name but it’s not anti-social.
Other example comes from a friend we called O. He got his GED in the 89’, I know this because after he got his GED he went and saw Do The Right Thing and told us the whole movie blow by blow. Anyway he was 17 and got a job working for the city and he was the one who told us of all the benefits being a government employee had and shit, and still works there if I’m not correct. In 2003 he made a big jump in his life, he married his off again on again girlfriend, got promoted a third time and moved out to burbs. That year in the Super Bowl the Eagles played and we went to have the Super Bowl party at his new spot. When we got out the cars he made a smart remark about how we should have all worn the same colors. So we asked why, thinking there was “black hate” in the area, not knowing until he told us there were more blacks than whites there. The problem however was the career path he chose to get in the neighborhood. He said the neighbor we saw used to talk to him until he asked what he did for a living and after that my man O was like the swine flue and shit.
We let this shit happen though, when someone doesn’t kick it around the crowd they should be around, that’s when being anti-social comes into play. If you don’t hangout with the chick who works at Starbucks no one cares, but if you don’t talk to that junior associate of some business downtown then you’re anti-social. I find myself falling in the zone thinking of Ice T lately. He said something about putting kids in a sandbox and with no one to tell them who to talk to they will get along fine and pick friends off of how people are. Now his layout was referring to race but in this situation it works the same for being social because as kids were like that, we hung out with people not because of what their parents did or where they lived but because we liked them and they liked us. Today even that’s gone, people move to be around like minded people such as themselves and call it a community. You see it during election year all the time, a spot where two to four homes have democrat or republican shit out being the minority. Ask someone do they know them and you’ll get no. Why? Because of their politics. Again its anti-social but we let it go because of politics in this case.
Even on social sites there’s a place where it says career and then you see earnings. I’m looking to kick it at clubs, hit a few shows with people into the same music as me, maybe get together at a basketball court or watch a few games. How does my job and wage affect that? Who knows really, but there are those who in their “about me” section it reads like a fucking resume, a resume to have you chill with them. Shit the Craigslist killer got his victims because he wrote out some good shit and was all that along with being a serial killer. That guy would not have gotten anywhere being, say my homie O, working for the city and shit. What we have done is in all honestly turned our country into one large ass high school with clicks at every turn. What used to be people of different backgrounds and beliefs and race connecting has just stopped somewhere? You see it on reality TV, remember how The Real World had some damn near homeless people or gay or just straight lower wage people and the basis was to see them interact with each other? That’s gone you get one person who is supposed to embody all this surrounded by those from the burbs who have it somewhat good. Bad to them is ones a drunk or have a parent who’s a drunk, ones a hoe (male or female), ones a bully and ones a geek-type. Again high school, and we are acting the same way in this country right now. The difference is that we have now just stopped talking to people who aren’t like us at all.
I have started to notice the people who claim they’re social aren’t by no means social, what they are is really people who play it safe. They rarely if at all venture out of their comfort zone to make friends, but tend to ridicule you for not being open to talk to people. Again that is code for talk to people in your same status quo not so much anyone you may find interesting. The truth and sad reality is if people were as social as they claim to be we’d understand one another better. All the stereotyping we do about one another could be reduced as well as these bullshit divide and conquer games politicians play with us. If we really got to know people we would be more open to working something out for healthcare, minimum wage, education and a lot of other shit that could be handled by the citizens first then brought to our government for change. It’s like that townhall meeting shit awhile back, some of those people lived right next to one another and never spoke due to ideologies, and the sad thing is once the bus left the anti-socialness continued as if that day never happened.
Baby Face Salute
Fri, 4th September, 2009
I want to start by saying I am NOT a Babyface fan. Now that that’s out the way, I am however a fan of good music and Babyface has brought a lot of that during his reign as an R&B go-to hit maker.
We are in a world of comparisons and alternatives. No greater example of this is our world of entertainment. Frank Sinatra or Tony Bennett, Lakers or Celtics, the first Darren or the second one, trust me we can go on for hours like this (Fun fact… Elizabeth Montgomery was always close to a Dick, both Darren’s real names were Dick). And in R&B music during the early 90’s it was the same. Either you were a fan of Boyz II Men, Jodeci or the groups who fell on either side of those two. H-Town was more like Jodeci while Shai was closer to Boyz II Men. Then there was Mariah or Whitney, which was the big thing back then. However it all comes down to Teddy Riley or Baby Face.
Both men were good at their jobs of making hits during the late 80’s to early 90’s, but Baby face was a bit more sophisticated with his music While Teddy was a “get the club popping” type of producer who could make you a star, Kenneth “Babyface” Edmonds could make you over and breathe life into your career. Both men had a huge hand in Bobby Brown’s “not ever looked at as a comeback” album “Don’t Be Cruel”. I say that because his first solo tryout was pure garbage with that single “I Need a Girlfriend” on it. The second time around Face and Mr. New Jack Swing gave him crazy hits that made him so big you forgot he was the second vocalist of New Edition And while Teddy Riley was making new stars and hits it was Babyface who sparked a new ray of light on The Whispers with that “Rock Steady” single as well as a few slow jams.
The sad point seems to be I think no one will every truly give Babyface his due for bringing artists a new beginning Look at Mary J before “I’m not Gon’ Cry.” She was an R&B chick singing over Hip Hop beats. You know how many chicks were in that lane? Yeah Mary can say she was the first to make it a popular trend but we all know Dr. Dre had Michel’le doing it before “What’s the 411?” even dropped. Mary was there along side Miss Jones, and Monifa and a few other chicks. Miss Jones can’t keep a gig for whatever reason and I hope Monifa isn’t high on some shit wit her sexy ass. Nonetheless, they all fell by the waist side compared to Mary not because Puff (oops Diddy) was guiding her but because of Babyface. He opened the door to the possibility that she could do more than just sing over well known Hip Hop beats. Older music fans started to follow her after that song, shit that song was the highlight of the whole “Waiting to Exhale” soundtrack. Radio played it hard no matter how much the label threw other songs out as singles. And it wasn’t just her he helped like that, look at Boyz II Men and their record breaking “End of the Road”. Before that song you knew Boyz II Men as a group of dudes who harmonized and wore button ups with ties and shorts. Yeah “Goodbye to Yesterday” was the shit but does anyone know many of their other songs from that album? Matter of fact, where is anyone else from that crew they were part of? ABC? Shit, I saw something a year or so ago on YouTube that they were making a DVD about they career. Not sure if someone told them being a cute gimmick with (from what I know) to be one album under their belt, counts as a career but hell they did that much so fuck me right? But that song on the Boomerang soundtrack opened the door for Boyz II Men to break out of the gimmick they had been given and be recognized as real singers.
Now before people read this and start to question who I mentioned and say “what about Toni?” I will say he put her on the planet during the beginnings of the 90’s. She, Jon B. and After 7 can go there too as far as acts he made hot. Hell he had Outkast and TLC signed to his label as well as a young as fuck Usher. And while most of the artists he worked with are still doing something good somewhere his other side of the coin, Mr. Riley had less success. Yeah Teddy had Michael Jackson’s, “Dangerous” being a must have in the hood, but most of the acts he dealt with left him alone for reasons we may never really know.
I always thought Babyface’s sound was too easy to spot, at some point any track he did was like the last track he did. Do I think that’s why he wasn’t a go-to guy anymore… nope not at all. Music changed and with him going thru a divorce he wasn’t in the mix anymore. The last big thing I know of him doing was Soul Food. The movie and soundtrack were great but between that and the Tony Rich Project, it was like Babyface just fell out of sight. You had the Neo-Soul movement taking hold a bit and R. Kelly was now the go-to guy with no real competition out there at all. Now, some of the artists he made hot are still doing it big and others are has-beens. You have Mary J. still doing it big even I vcan’t stand the newer shit, Usher is still in demand a bit and Outkast are one Hip Hops most creative groups. I know Jon B. still tours, small club, he did a show at some hole in the wall here in KC a few weeks ago. LaFace records is no more and LA Reid was running shit at Arista before going to Def Jam then Island and now I think sorts mail for Interscope, Left Eye passed and TLC was lost, Toni went under the knife and did some plays but was never a real big hit for years. We all know about Bobby and the former Mrs. Brown, who is working on a comeback, good for her. Babyface did make a comeback himself to only as Skillz put it “look just like Musiq”, and the song sucked too. But he had a good run and when you think of the late 80’s and early 90’s he is right there with more than enough songs to fill anyone’s play list.
You got my thanks for making some hot classics Face, (like he’ll find this site and reply with a thank you and shit).
We are in a world of comparisons and alternatives. No greater example of this is our world of entertainment. Frank Sinatra or Tony Bennett, Lakers or Celtics, the first Darren or the second one, trust me we can go on for hours like this (Fun fact… Elizabeth Montgomery was always close to a Dick, both Darren’s real names were Dick). And in R&B music during the early 90’s it was the same. Either you were a fan of Boyz II Men, Jodeci or the groups who fell on either side of those two. H-Town was more like Jodeci while Shai was closer to Boyz II Men. Then there was Mariah or Whitney, which was the big thing back then. However it all comes down to Teddy Riley or Baby Face.
Both men were good at their jobs of making hits during the late 80’s to early 90’s, but Baby face was a bit more sophisticated with his music While Teddy was a “get the club popping” type of producer who could make you a star, Kenneth “Babyface” Edmonds could make you over and breathe life into your career. Both men had a huge hand in Bobby Brown’s “not ever looked at as a comeback” album “Don’t Be Cruel”. I say that because his first solo tryout was pure garbage with that single “I Need a Girlfriend” on it. The second time around Face and Mr. New Jack Swing gave him crazy hits that made him so big you forgot he was the second vocalist of New Edition And while Teddy Riley was making new stars and hits it was Babyface who sparked a new ray of light on The Whispers with that “Rock Steady” single as well as a few slow jams.
The sad point seems to be I think no one will every truly give Babyface his due for bringing artists a new beginning Look at Mary J before “I’m not Gon’ Cry.” She was an R&B chick singing over Hip Hop beats. You know how many chicks were in that lane? Yeah Mary can say she was the first to make it a popular trend but we all know Dr. Dre had Michel’le doing it before “What’s the 411?” even dropped. Mary was there along side Miss Jones, and Monifa and a few other chicks. Miss Jones can’t keep a gig for whatever reason and I hope Monifa isn’t high on some shit wit her sexy ass. Nonetheless, they all fell by the waist side compared to Mary not because Puff (oops Diddy) was guiding her but because of Babyface. He opened the door to the possibility that she could do more than just sing over well known Hip Hop beats. Older music fans started to follow her after that song, shit that song was the highlight of the whole “Waiting to Exhale” soundtrack. Radio played it hard no matter how much the label threw other songs out as singles. And it wasn’t just her he helped like that, look at Boyz II Men and their record breaking “End of the Road”. Before that song you knew Boyz II Men as a group of dudes who harmonized and wore button ups with ties and shorts. Yeah “Goodbye to Yesterday” was the shit but does anyone know many of their other songs from that album? Matter of fact, where is anyone else from that crew they were part of? ABC? Shit, I saw something a year or so ago on YouTube that they were making a DVD about they career. Not sure if someone told them being a cute gimmick with (from what I know) to be one album under their belt, counts as a career but hell they did that much so fuck me right? But that song on the Boomerang soundtrack opened the door for Boyz II Men to break out of the gimmick they had been given and be recognized as real singers.
Now before people read this and start to question who I mentioned and say “what about Toni?” I will say he put her on the planet during the beginnings of the 90’s. She, Jon B. and After 7 can go there too as far as acts he made hot. Hell he had Outkast and TLC signed to his label as well as a young as fuck Usher. And while most of the artists he worked with are still doing something good somewhere his other side of the coin, Mr. Riley had less success. Yeah Teddy had Michael Jackson’s, “Dangerous” being a must have in the hood, but most of the acts he dealt with left him alone for reasons we may never really know.
I always thought Babyface’s sound was too easy to spot, at some point any track he did was like the last track he did. Do I think that’s why he wasn’t a go-to guy anymore… nope not at all. Music changed and with him going thru a divorce he wasn’t in the mix anymore. The last big thing I know of him doing was Soul Food. The movie and soundtrack were great but between that and the Tony Rich Project, it was like Babyface just fell out of sight. You had the Neo-Soul movement taking hold a bit and R. Kelly was now the go-to guy with no real competition out there at all. Now, some of the artists he made hot are still doing it big and others are has-beens. You have Mary J. still doing it big even I vcan’t stand the newer shit, Usher is still in demand a bit and Outkast are one Hip Hops most creative groups. I know Jon B. still tours, small club, he did a show at some hole in the wall here in KC a few weeks ago. LaFace records is no more and LA Reid was running shit at Arista before going to Def Jam then Island and now I think sorts mail for Interscope, Left Eye passed and TLC was lost, Toni went under the knife and did some plays but was never a real big hit for years. We all know about Bobby and the former Mrs. Brown, who is working on a comeback, good for her. Babyface did make a comeback himself to only as Skillz put it “look just like Musiq”, and the song sucked too. But he had a good run and when you think of the late 80’s and early 90’s he is right there with more than enough songs to fill anyone’s play list.
You got my thanks for making some hot classics Face, (like he’ll find this site and reply with a thank you and shit).
Fall and still blank slat
Fri, 4th September, 2009
So as much as I know I should be doing a gang of recording I’m not, don’t want get into the whys really. Ok, fuck it, I’m just still trying to find that vibe still to get in that zone. I got the lyrics ready and still picking beats and making new ones. I would love to just get some beats from other producers, but most guys throwing me beats just don’t get the vibe I’m about. I’m a subterranean dude, I love my beats gritty and rhymes well thought out layered with realness. It’s just being in an area surrounded by images of what they want to be perceived as makes bouncing off real people 100 times harder. So with that being the case it’s making the mood to record a bit crazy. I know different region makes for a difference essence, but as of late it’s less about location and more about people. In event I get told all the time to take a vacation, it’s not that I’m for it just still thinks it’s not useful. I do need to get away though, just where to go is the problem for me. I need to get around something to throw that spark back in me. I wish I could be just talking out my ass, but I’m not which makes this again the problem. I did do a few tracks just not the level of Hip Hop I’m accustom to. So I may erase the shit.
The Black Out
Thu, 3rd September, 2009
I really don’t touch on race a lot but given the fact I had some crazy ass idea for a TV show, and there are NO black TV shows at all anymore, the race issue really hit home. I say this while Tyler Perry has his thing popping on TBS, and then there’s always BET and VH1. Now that is a Chris Rock routine waiting to happen isn’t it? Speaking of which, his show was canned! I really liked it for no real reason other than it reminded me of my life to a degree. Add that to the fact they worked real jobs and struggled. We haven’t had that combo since the Conner’s went off the air. It was truly a good “black” show. The shit you get on BET and VH1 are shows where one showcases a series of stereotypes solidify their “blackness”. Some people watch because it is frankly the only way to see African Americans on television as a “black” show, others really think the shows are good and will fight whoever disagrees with them. Then there are those totally against such porch monkey buffoonery that they actually judge a person from their view on these shows. Yeah I’m in that third choice. Shit I was able to pick what channels I wanted and totally left BET off my list.
I always wonder how Shonda Rhimes deals with ABC about her show, Grey’s Anatomy. I know that Isaiah Washington was supposed to play the “McDreamy” role, would it have been such a big hype over the character being so sexy with all the pop shows like “ET” and a number of other shows like it as well as magazines covering the star playing the role? Would Isaiah have caught so much flack for the “gay” comment to T.R. Knight? Grey’s Anatomy has a very diverse cast as many shows set in the city tent to do, and all are very adamant about never stereotyping their black characters to a degree. However, you still get the “sassy black chick” and the “angry brother” no matter what shows you watch. There are the shows that never had a non-white playing a major role at all, no one complained and those shows when were very successful. The WB, UPN and FOX have all started out with black sitcoms and then did a complete 180 not having any “black shows” at all. But what makes me pissed, and by no means is this aimed at Shonda, is how black shows have to have whites in their shows (as well as movies a lot times) to even hint at reaching outside of a black audience. Again the reason I never looked at it like that with “Everyone Hates Chris” is because it was about his life, so the white people in the show were part of the mix off top, but many other shows had to add white actors and actresses and even calm down their “blackness” in order to gain a white audience. Some shows found they really didn’t need the token white character (“Different World” season 1, “Martin” season 1 and some of 2) and were highly successful. So what happened? You can’t find a good black show at all. Again I’m not really a fan of Tyler Perry so I haven’t even begun to check out his show at all.
Now I do notice sometimes shows don’t work because of race issues, hence ABCs Motherhood. Now the show was never going to be a big hit for ABC, it came off as their attempt to grab cable viewers who tent to watch quirky shows. One thing that was talked about all over the web was the interracial couple. It was the “perfect mother” married to a black man living in the burbs, and the black guy looked like most dudes you’d see in the streets. Just a few comments that described the show were,
“Emily has the most traditional family, even though she has an interracial marriage” - Sitcom.com.
“Last night, ABC premiered its newest sitcom Motherhood. Emily is the “perfect mom” in an interracial marriage.” - Themomcrowd.com.
“Her (Emily) ongoing interracial marriage to milquetoast Jason (Ron Reaco Lee) has produced a boy and a girl so far.’ - Unclebarky.com
Did it really matter or was it more that the husband wasn’t “Jeffing” or looked like he was some N.W.A? It’s sad we still haven’t gotten pass the fact that we as blacks on TV have to be clowns. You always hear how people say we have no more black sitcoms, has anyone really EVER tried to branch out to dramas? I know the guy who was the first black captain on a Star Trek show (Avery Brooks) did have a short, I mean really short, run with his own show “A Man Named Hawk”. Bill Cosby had the mystery show that wasn’t bad but wasn’t mind blowing either. I guess that’s why Shonda made the show the way she did, it might not have seen the light of day if Grey was black or wouldn’t be such a big hit no matter how good the writing and acting is. So I guess for now we (I mean whoever watches, I’m not including myself at all just generalizing) are stuck with the BET and VH1 blackface, over the top ass, step and fetch it reality shows…. I mean come on Keyshia is the money that good or is it the ultimate payback for a shitty childhood to set your peoples out there like that?
I always wonder how Shonda Rhimes deals with ABC about her show, Grey’s Anatomy. I know that Isaiah Washington was supposed to play the “McDreamy” role, would it have been such a big hype over the character being so sexy with all the pop shows like “ET” and a number of other shows like it as well as magazines covering the star playing the role? Would Isaiah have caught so much flack for the “gay” comment to T.R. Knight? Grey’s Anatomy has a very diverse cast as many shows set in the city tent to do, and all are very adamant about never stereotyping their black characters to a degree. However, you still get the “sassy black chick” and the “angry brother” no matter what shows you watch. There are the shows that never had a non-white playing a major role at all, no one complained and those shows when were very successful. The WB, UPN and FOX have all started out with black sitcoms and then did a complete 180 not having any “black shows” at all. But what makes me pissed, and by no means is this aimed at Shonda, is how black shows have to have whites in their shows (as well as movies a lot times) to even hint at reaching outside of a black audience. Again the reason I never looked at it like that with “Everyone Hates Chris” is because it was about his life, so the white people in the show were part of the mix off top, but many other shows had to add white actors and actresses and even calm down their “blackness” in order to gain a white audience. Some shows found they really didn’t need the token white character (“Different World” season 1, “Martin” season 1 and some of 2) and were highly successful. So what happened? You can’t find a good black show at all. Again I’m not really a fan of Tyler Perry so I haven’t even begun to check out his show at all.
Now I do notice sometimes shows don’t work because of race issues, hence ABCs Motherhood. Now the show was never going to be a big hit for ABC, it came off as their attempt to grab cable viewers who tent to watch quirky shows. One thing that was talked about all over the web was the interracial couple. It was the “perfect mother” married to a black man living in the burbs, and the black guy looked like most dudes you’d see in the streets. Just a few comments that described the show were,
“Emily has the most traditional family, even though she has an interracial marriage” - Sitcom.com.
“Last night, ABC premiered its newest sitcom Motherhood. Emily is the “perfect mom” in an interracial marriage.” - Themomcrowd.com.
“Her (Emily) ongoing interracial marriage to milquetoast Jason (Ron Reaco Lee) has produced a boy and a girl so far.’ - Unclebarky.com
Did it really matter or was it more that the husband wasn’t “Jeffing” or looked like he was some N.W.A? It’s sad we still haven’t gotten pass the fact that we as blacks on TV have to be clowns. You always hear how people say we have no more black sitcoms, has anyone really EVER tried to branch out to dramas? I know the guy who was the first black captain on a Star Trek show (Avery Brooks) did have a short, I mean really short, run with his own show “A Man Named Hawk”. Bill Cosby had the mystery show that wasn’t bad but wasn’t mind blowing either. I guess that’s why Shonda made the show the way she did, it might not have seen the light of day if Grey was black or wouldn’t be such a big hit no matter how good the writing and acting is. So I guess for now we (I mean whoever watches, I’m not including myself at all just generalizing) are stuck with the BET and VH1 blackface, over the top ass, step and fetch it reality shows…. I mean come on Keyshia is the money that good or is it the ultimate payback for a shitty childhood to set your peoples out there like that?
I AM
Thu, 3rd September, 2009
I AM with every essence of my being.
I am life with purpose, imagination with no limits.
I am love unconditional, hate with focus.
I am ambition driven towards high goals, scared of heights, too worried about the drop down to every fully aim high.
I am a complete man with an incomplete life, an incomplete life with a broken compass.
I am chocolate covered dreams, salty tear soaked pillows stained with insecurities.
I am pain wrapped in a frame of a solider that was told men don’t cry.
I am rhyme with reason.
I am a walking enigma, still in the process of knowing myself
I am a reflection of truth, a reflection of hurt, the light on the dark lies that lies with in us all.
I am a continuum.
I am Lillian’s oldest, the one who has her eyes, sense of humor and understanding but lack her compassion.
I AM with every essence of my being…still work in progress.
Wishes
Mon, 31st August, 2009
Remember the “Wishing upon a Star” song? I was chilling listening to some dudes talking about what they’d do with a nice grip. All I heard was I wish, I wish, I wish and it was for money on stupid shit. So then the question came my way, “You don’t wish you had a good 15 to 20 K at times to just live it up”? Me being me my answer was so far from what they wanted to hear. I simply said “Nah, why would I”? I guess I’m in the minority of those who grew up poor because money doesn’t make or break me. Never did much with money other than save and spend it on bills, or on shit I really wanted like old records. So then I was asked what I would wish for.
Well really my wishes would be well deserved selfish ones. I wish I could, if just for the time it takes the sun to fully rise, speak with my grandmother. I was in the third grade when she passed, and still to this day I remember the last tease phase she was in. My brother was born and the A Team had shit on smash. My brother had hair in the middle of his head and my grandmother was bent on nicknaming him Mr. T. She’d hold him and with breathe smelling like butterscotch baby talk “you pity the fool don’t you? Yes you do.” I would love to talk to her mother who I remember looked George Jefferson’s mother. I would love to know so much about my mom and their lives beyond the crazy stories I have stored in my memory. Would love to know as a man have I made them proud? And speaking of being a man, I wish I was strong enough to find a building block to start a new foundation with my dad. I’ve tried but my hope is it will one day before it’s too late.
I wish I could just once touch down in Africa and feel that connect you hear people say they get. To travel the Middle East, to view Mecca, Jerusalem, and to see the pyramids in Egypt Go to India and walk the same sand that held the frail frame and strong will of Gandhi.
I couldn’t see myself wishing for money, why would I? When I did have good money, deep pockets popping I helped loved ones and friends stay afloat. When I travel around the country I took people with me when I traveled. So I guess in one way I did get that wish in my lifetime. I remember watching my mom and wishing I could give her break, it came I saw, I concurred.
I learned early in life money doesn’t make you rich by any sense. I’ve spent many high school days skipping school and waiting for a bus by bums and homeless people. The stories they told me were pre magic, I’ve watched grown men cry telling me stuff. So I knew growing up Living a good life isn’t about what you have, but what you have experienced. And that’s why I would never wish I could do shit over, even the fucked up stuff. You live you learn and I did both and still doing so.
Well really my wishes would be well deserved selfish ones. I wish I could, if just for the time it takes the sun to fully rise, speak with my grandmother. I was in the third grade when she passed, and still to this day I remember the last tease phase she was in. My brother was born and the A Team had shit on smash. My brother had hair in the middle of his head and my grandmother was bent on nicknaming him Mr. T. She’d hold him and with breathe smelling like butterscotch baby talk “you pity the fool don’t you? Yes you do.” I would love to talk to her mother who I remember looked George Jefferson’s mother. I would love to know so much about my mom and their lives beyond the crazy stories I have stored in my memory. Would love to know as a man have I made them proud? And speaking of being a man, I wish I was strong enough to find a building block to start a new foundation with my dad. I’ve tried but my hope is it will one day before it’s too late.
I wish I could just once touch down in Africa and feel that connect you hear people say they get. To travel the Middle East, to view Mecca, Jerusalem, and to see the pyramids in Egypt Go to India and walk the same sand that held the frail frame and strong will of Gandhi.
I couldn’t see myself wishing for money, why would I? When I did have good money, deep pockets popping I helped loved ones and friends stay afloat. When I travel around the country I took people with me when I traveled. So I guess in one way I did get that wish in my lifetime. I remember watching my mom and wishing I could give her break, it came I saw, I concurred.
I learned early in life money doesn’t make you rich by any sense. I’ve spent many high school days skipping school and waiting for a bus by bums and homeless people. The stories they told me were pre magic, I’ve watched grown men cry telling me stuff. So I knew growing up Living a good life isn’t about what you have, but what you have experienced. And that’s why I would never wish I could do shit over, even the fucked up stuff. You live you learn and I did both and still doing so.
Summer of Hate (working title)
Mon, 31st August, 2009
The title has been floating around in my head since I came across a rock song had that title by a band called Crocodiles. The song isn’t bad but I just haven’t gotten time to let the sound soak in and embrace it as of yet. Back to the title though, it just sounds attention grabbing to me for a lot of reasons. So now I’m picking beats and making new ones for what will be a ten track cd. I will be including an instrumental with the folder as well as some links. Can say now that is not an ill will type endeavor, the title is just way I feel about the shit as of now. It will be the same old Ceez with the soulful beats and all angles I speak on. Wish I could get that classic S.O.N.N feel with having O drop a verse or four on the cd, but we riding on some other shit so S.O.N.N still shining. So as for as when it should be done…. Give me two weeks.
Def Jam is 25 years old
Mon, 31st August, 2009
So Def Jam is 25 and I figure being older they must be suffering from Alzheimer at this point. I saw the track listing for the Anniversary sets they got on the street and it sucks they just ran pass all the true classics. I mean you would think any Public Enemy song other than “911 Is A Joke’, would make it seem as if they truly know their past. “911 Is A Joke”!?! That shit is a joke, the inclusion of that track being the Public Enemy song waters down their legacy in the eyes of the unknowing Hip Hop fan. You have a gang of songs that just pure pop to give the vibe Def Jam is some sort of Hip Hop Motown. The problem to me isn’t that they don’t have more than a gang of radio hits, it’s the fact that instead of embracing the integrity of artist they chose to lessen their contributions to the label. Like “911 Is A Joke”, sorry that song is good but will never nor should NEVER be the first song you think of when you say Public Enemy. Why didn’t they use ‘Fight the Power”? That was big a song for them, I get the last verse could be the real reason, but they have to get it over it.
PE isn’t the only ones this bull shit has popped off on, look at Ghost, he has the joint with Ne-Yo added to the collection? Anyone who got Fishscale knows that song was the friendliest, but the worst track on the album. 3rd Bass has “Pop Goes the Weasel” instead of any song from the “Cactus Album”. And can someone inform people at Def Jam that Slick Rick has more songs than “Children Story”, they’ve put it on a lot of compilations under the Def Jam label. And Luda and Foxy aren’t looking good on the collection either from where I sit. Foxy is on two different cds but they rock the some Dru Hill collabo and Luda has the “Splash Waterfalls” shit popping? Could they not find better songs from both artists? EPMD was on Def Jam right? The most consistent group on Def Jam next to PE and Redman didn’t make the cut, never really was a radio success story though, but should have done “Gold Diggers”.
One thing is evident looking at the track listings , the label has become a home for the untalented. I will say Def Jam did have shit on lock during the Ja rule, Jay Z, Ludacris, Ashanti, Sisqo, Musiq and DMX days. You couldn’t go an hour without hearing a Def Jam song or artist, mainly Jay and Ja Rule, damn Ja Rule was on every song on the radio at one point wasn’t he? But now the singers suck and the rappers (not giving any of them dudes love like that) are just the worst at this time of the labels run. Not sure why though, I mean Jay signed the Roots, Nas, Ghost and Nore was on there as well the Rocafella roster before it was shut down. Other than Ghost and the Nas song with singing nothing else made the cut, not even really great classic Jay Z shit made the cut on theses cds, seems like a waste to add “Money Ain’t A Thing” when you could have used ‘Brooklyn’s Finest” the true Big and Jay song that set off the thought how good the Commission could have been. Instead you get the JD and Mya tracks??? Def Jam is a prime example of what is fucked up about the culture and the music and the way industry BS is in play all the time. Instead of educating their younger audience and re-educating those who know of Def Jam but may have never known they were behind so many Hip Hop classics, they chose to play radio hits and really market their current roster. I guess that’s why Warner Bros. won’t be pushing a real Cold Chillin’ best of set because after Biz and Daddy Kane its pop culture unknowns. So Def Jam has become an enabler to all that’s wrong with music when they once were the label that others compared themselves to. Death Row was the West Coast Def Jam, Loud was the Def Jam of old, Wild Pitch like Rawkus were Def Jam type label that ran with artist who would have made the cut if they came out during the mid to late 80’s. These cds shows how Def Jam has fell the fuck off, don’t blame Jay please, and are now just content with piece of shit artist they have signed. I know Kanye is on Def Jam, still sticking with the comment, with the exclusion of Nas, Kiss, Ghost and The Roots, Redman and any other real artist who won’t get pushed due to the BS now.
PE isn’t the only ones this bull shit has popped off on, look at Ghost, he has the joint with Ne-Yo added to the collection? Anyone who got Fishscale knows that song was the friendliest, but the worst track on the album. 3rd Bass has “Pop Goes the Weasel” instead of any song from the “Cactus Album”. And can someone inform people at Def Jam that Slick Rick has more songs than “Children Story”, they’ve put it on a lot of compilations under the Def Jam label. And Luda and Foxy aren’t looking good on the collection either from where I sit. Foxy is on two different cds but they rock the some Dru Hill collabo and Luda has the “Splash Waterfalls” shit popping? Could they not find better songs from both artists? EPMD was on Def Jam right? The most consistent group on Def Jam next to PE and Redman didn’t make the cut, never really was a radio success story though, but should have done “Gold Diggers”.
One thing is evident looking at the track listings , the label has become a home for the untalented. I will say Def Jam did have shit on lock during the Ja rule, Jay Z, Ludacris, Ashanti, Sisqo, Musiq and DMX days. You couldn’t go an hour without hearing a Def Jam song or artist, mainly Jay and Ja Rule, damn Ja Rule was on every song on the radio at one point wasn’t he? But now the singers suck and the rappers (not giving any of them dudes love like that) are just the worst at this time of the labels run. Not sure why though, I mean Jay signed the Roots, Nas, Ghost and Nore was on there as well the Rocafella roster before it was shut down. Other than Ghost and the Nas song with singing nothing else made the cut, not even really great classic Jay Z shit made the cut on theses cds, seems like a waste to add “Money Ain’t A Thing” when you could have used ‘Brooklyn’s Finest” the true Big and Jay song that set off the thought how good the Commission could have been. Instead you get the JD and Mya tracks??? Def Jam is a prime example of what is fucked up about the culture and the music and the way industry BS is in play all the time. Instead of educating their younger audience and re-educating those who know of Def Jam but may have never known they were behind so many Hip Hop classics, they chose to play radio hits and really market their current roster. I guess that’s why Warner Bros. won’t be pushing a real Cold Chillin’ best of set because after Biz and Daddy Kane its pop culture unknowns. So Def Jam has become an enabler to all that’s wrong with music when they once were the label that others compared themselves to. Death Row was the West Coast Def Jam, Loud was the Def Jam of old, Wild Pitch like Rawkus were Def Jam type label that ran with artist who would have made the cut if they came out during the mid to late 80’s. These cds shows how Def Jam has fell the fuck off, don’t blame Jay please, and are now just content with piece of shit artist they have signed. I know Kanye is on Def Jam, still sticking with the comment, with the exclusion of Nas, Kiss, Ghost and The Roots, Redman and any other real artist who won’t get pushed due to the BS now.
Art of Ceez
Sun, 30th August, 2009
So I want to start this post by saying I really hate the whole “put original samples out there” movement. You’ve seen this with the dusty Fingers collection and a few other Cds that have dropped over the years. It’s when some people get the idea to put the original songs sampled by your favorite producers on a single CD. Not because it’s violating that code of secrecy that producers have amongst themselves and labels sometimes save on spending money for the rights to use or being sued , that too in a way, but because the internet makes people lose the real sense of digging. I read a guys post who said he was tired because he hunted online for months to find some songs Daz sampled. Now I could say it’s just the sign of the times or go with it the way most real Hip Hop diggers do… that is straight gay. First of all, that guy and many more are missing the best part of hunting down records which is getting or already having an artist album or their 45’s that has been part of a classic Hip Hop song. Shit I have always had Otis Redding’s, “I’m So Hard to Handle” and loved the horns to death. I’ve placed the record on many turntables and did the alcohol rub down to them too. Yet still when I was 20 I realized it was the foundation for one of Hip Hop’s greatest posse cuts, “The Symphony”.
I’ve found most of Hip Hop’s greatest breaks and now classic must haves to show you know your Hip Hop by knowing what song was used to make that hit in odd ass places. Before Ebay was the way to go, people went to Flea Markets and thrift stores to cop good records for dirt cheap. If they didn’t want to go to a vintage spot to buy records, they got them from people they knew on the street, like family and friends. I got a shit load of classic albums that way and wasn’t afraid to travel to get my hands on them. If I left my city and was going to be somewhere else for a good minute I was looking for a thrift store to see what they had to offer.
Nowadays people google (or whatever search engine they use all day) and hope to find these gems. I have looked up a few songs some myself more so for the names of them (since knowing the words to a song doesn’t always mean you know the title). And a few times I have downloaded a song, but they had to be ripped mp3s not digitally re mastered songs. If you sample iTunes re-mastered versions of old songs you’re missing the point all together. Nothing like that should be sampled or really rocked. To say you’re a fan you need the odd, most of the time bass heavy, sound of old recordings. Case in point, I have a re-mastered version of Donny Hathaway’s, “I Just Want to Say”. They totally cut shit out of that song to make it “perfect”. I love that song so much, not because it’s a good song, but it’s pure AS IS. There’s a part where one of the background singers comes in too soon. I came away thinking how she must really be feeling this shit and then I waited for that moment on the Napster version only to be let down by studio magic. So now we have people sampling songs re-mastered and those who have the albums or 45’s to sample from which have a dirty baseline or even a few extra vocal moments on it. Which sounds better for a hungry MC?
I’m saying all this because on the site I will be posting a few of the songs I’ve sampled from. The reason I am posting those songs is because when I tell people what samples I used, I get strange replies back. My sample style is not just to loop a few bars, I rarely do that at all. I’m a very chop and dice game type of guy. So starting today I will be lacing you with a bit of treats every few days. The beat I made…. and then the sample. Like Guru said”Rap is an art you can't own no loops
its how you hook em up and the rhyme style troop”.
I’ve found most of Hip Hop’s greatest breaks and now classic must haves to show you know your Hip Hop by knowing what song was used to make that hit in odd ass places. Before Ebay was the way to go, people went to Flea Markets and thrift stores to cop good records for dirt cheap. If they didn’t want to go to a vintage spot to buy records, they got them from people they knew on the street, like family and friends. I got a shit load of classic albums that way and wasn’t afraid to travel to get my hands on them. If I left my city and was going to be somewhere else for a good minute I was looking for a thrift store to see what they had to offer.
Nowadays people google (or whatever search engine they use all day) and hope to find these gems. I have looked up a few songs some myself more so for the names of them (since knowing the words to a song doesn’t always mean you know the title). And a few times I have downloaded a song, but they had to be ripped mp3s not digitally re mastered songs. If you sample iTunes re-mastered versions of old songs you’re missing the point all together. Nothing like that should be sampled or really rocked. To say you’re a fan you need the odd, most of the time bass heavy, sound of old recordings. Case in point, I have a re-mastered version of Donny Hathaway’s, “I Just Want to Say”. They totally cut shit out of that song to make it “perfect”. I love that song so much, not because it’s a good song, but it’s pure AS IS. There’s a part where one of the background singers comes in too soon. I came away thinking how she must really be feeling this shit and then I waited for that moment on the Napster version only to be let down by studio magic. So now we have people sampling songs re-mastered and those who have the albums or 45’s to sample from which have a dirty baseline or even a few extra vocal moments on it. Which sounds better for a hungry MC?
I’m saying all this because on the site I will be posting a few of the songs I’ve sampled from. The reason I am posting those songs is because when I tell people what samples I used, I get strange replies back. My sample style is not just to loop a few bars, I rarely do that at all. I’m a very chop and dice game type of guy. So starting today I will be lacing you with a bit of treats every few days. The beat I made…. and then the sample. Like Guru said”Rap is an art you can't own no loops
its how you hook em up and the rhyme style troop”.
The proposal
Sun, 30th August, 2009
So did Meg Ryan not tell Sandra Bullock that she too needs to move beyond these half hearted romantic comedies? Here’s a movies that seems to follow all the typical cleshaes
That even tv shows fall into. Someone needs to pretend to be getting married to stay in the country. They fall for one another and all ends well, and cut to credits.
My problem is Sandra Bullock should be taking her career to the new level by now. I mean her role in “Crash” was a pleasant shock. Now I wasn’t a fan of “The Lake House” or the one where her husband died but didn’t, or did he? I’m not saying she’s not a talented actress because she is no question about that. Just don’t get why she should milk this cow anymore. You would think at this point in her career she would attempt to spread her wings a bit. Do I think the movie will be good? The only you don’t know about this film is the script, because the rest is nothing new by any stretch of the imagination.
That even tv shows fall into. Someone needs to pretend to be getting married to stay in the country. They fall for one another and all ends well, and cut to credits.
My problem is Sandra Bullock should be taking her career to the new level by now. I mean her role in “Crash” was a pleasant shock. Now I wasn’t a fan of “The Lake House” or the one where her husband died but didn’t, or did he? I’m not saying she’s not a talented actress because she is no question about that. Just don’t get why she should milk this cow anymore. You would think at this point in her career she would attempt to spread her wings a bit. Do I think the movie will be good? The only you don’t know about this film is the script, because the rest is nothing new by any stretch of the imagination.
Marvin Gaye
Sun, 30th August, 2009
I was watching the Tavis Smiley Show, as I do every night, and this night was a shock to me. He talked about it being 25 years since the great Marvin Gaye died. The thing about Marvin Gaye’s death is it was a shock to the world at that time. I remember it well, it’s a major moment in my childhood to be real. It popped up on the tube and my mom just yell ‘What” and walked off to the bathroom. Not sure if she cried or not, but I do know she was shook for a few days after the news. All the older people I was around were lost at that time, I think more for who killed him then what happened. Marvin Gaye was murdered by his farther, a gun shot to the chest during an argument.. It’s wild because I can only say that the closest I’ve come to something as a blow to my world was the death of Pac, Richard Pryor, James Brown Bernie Mac and George Carlin. And all those were more because it came so out of the blue.
Growing up I knew all of the Tammi and Marvin songs by heart and as well as early Marvin stuff. Didn’t appreciate “What’s Going On” until middle school that was when Public Enemy really was an impact in my life. So it was natural such a visionary like Marvin Gaye would also appeal to my musical taste. I remember having the white Motown tapes of ‘What’s Going On” and “I Want You” and playing them until they snapped. Even then I did the scotch tape the ends together and keep it moving trick. Didn’t start hunting down and buying the albums until my late teens early 20’s.
Since then I have collected crazy 45’s and albums, most sad to say are the less known stuff he recorded. I think his rendition of many Motown classics as well other artists’ songs are mind blowing. His Version of “I Wish It Would Rain” is so heart felt and just sad yet deep. Same can be said for “Yesterday”, it plays like a confession to the listener of heartbreak His openness and honest soul baring style is just an inspiration and influence to me. It’s as if you were his therapist and he just told you where he was in that point in his life. The “Here My Dear” album plays like audio bio pick for a man and his relationships. The way he goes old school doo wop to his new love is brilliant, what a way to say she makes me feel young again. And the way he put his then ex-wife on blast to a crazy backdrop is just too slick. That album and his later albums to follow got bad reviews but when listening to them today it showcases how he was ready to push the envelope and still stay grounded in the essence he was brought up on. There was a theme to his album that the time of their release was over people heads. Now when you hear it see it plays out with a nice pace.
Marvin was the man hands down, I know Motown kept him from really spreading his wings fully though. Not to mention his personal demons played a part as well in not going that extra mile in his career. But to even get into the foulness of his life and see he was who he was at the end of the day adds to the man, the legend that he is. Because no one should drop such touching jaw dropping honest music without internal battles in his life. Whether that’s drugs, insecurity, infidelity, seeking approval from family and peers or trying to break out of the shadows of people. You get that vibe in his interviews and his live shows played like a kid playing their favorite star in a mirror. He seemed very free and willing to do anything to make the show unique. I heard band members say they knew the opening and closing songs and the middle was what Marvin felt like doing that night That would have been a great gig or just to say you’ve been to more than one show and they weren’t the same routines is heaven for a fan. You will be missed and reborn over and over again through the influence you have made on musicians around the world no matter the genre.
R.I.P.
Marvin Gaye April 2, 1939-April 1, 1984
Growing up I knew all of the Tammi and Marvin songs by heart and as well as early Marvin stuff. Didn’t appreciate “What’s Going On” until middle school that was when Public Enemy really was an impact in my life. So it was natural such a visionary like Marvin Gaye would also appeal to my musical taste. I remember having the white Motown tapes of ‘What’s Going On” and “I Want You” and playing them until they snapped. Even then I did the scotch tape the ends together and keep it moving trick. Didn’t start hunting down and buying the albums until my late teens early 20’s.
Since then I have collected crazy 45’s and albums, most sad to say are the less known stuff he recorded. I think his rendition of many Motown classics as well other artists’ songs are mind blowing. His Version of “I Wish It Would Rain” is so heart felt and just sad yet deep. Same can be said for “Yesterday”, it plays like a confession to the listener of heartbreak His openness and honest soul baring style is just an inspiration and influence to me. It’s as if you were his therapist and he just told you where he was in that point in his life. The “Here My Dear” album plays like audio bio pick for a man and his relationships. The way he goes old school doo wop to his new love is brilliant, what a way to say she makes me feel young again. And the way he put his then ex-wife on blast to a crazy backdrop is just too slick. That album and his later albums to follow got bad reviews but when listening to them today it showcases how he was ready to push the envelope and still stay grounded in the essence he was brought up on. There was a theme to his album that the time of their release was over people heads. Now when you hear it see it plays out with a nice pace.
Marvin was the man hands down, I know Motown kept him from really spreading his wings fully though. Not to mention his personal demons played a part as well in not going that extra mile in his career. But to even get into the foulness of his life and see he was who he was at the end of the day adds to the man, the legend that he is. Because no one should drop such touching jaw dropping honest music without internal battles in his life. Whether that’s drugs, insecurity, infidelity, seeking approval from family and peers or trying to break out of the shadows of people. You get that vibe in his interviews and his live shows played like a kid playing their favorite star in a mirror. He seemed very free and willing to do anything to make the show unique. I heard band members say they knew the opening and closing songs and the middle was what Marvin felt like doing that night That would have been a great gig or just to say you’ve been to more than one show and they weren’t the same routines is heaven for a fan. You will be missed and reborn over and over again through the influence you have made on musicians around the world no matter the genre.
R.I.P.
Marvin Gaye April 2, 1939-April 1, 1984
Minimum is no loner good enough
Sat, 29th August, 2009
So General Motors will be filling for bankruptcy this morning, and I can’t for life of me understand why should we care to a degree. I was listening to This Week with George Stephanopoulos, notice I said listening right. Well I started looking then noticed on my to the kitchen a young lady getting her workout on with the blinds up and well I was listening from that point on. Anyway during the roundtable discussion the point was made of the jobs lost if GM went down. I loved how someone skipped that whole point and went to the side of those who can afford cars and said consumers will just find another company to buy from. Odd as that statement was it also sums up how we look at blue collar workers, they’re beneath us a people because they sweat at their jobs.
The proof is in the pudding so to speak, just take a look at Katrina for the cold hard truth. Notice how Bush was cool with being labeled racist just to keep the focus away from the working poor? Why, well because race is to battle but when you start talking about a class of people who work hard and come away with next to nothing then that net catches a lot fish. The fact Obama may not even get to make a living wage this term, if he gets re-elected, is because so much focus is on those stimulus checks he just pushed. But we need to do something and do it fast. It may never happen because we have all but said if you work a low paying job it falls on you and no one else but you. And I totally agree, but where I take objection at is the pay scale which people fall victim to. I think it the worst fact that one can work these low paying jobs for 5 to 6 and make maybe a dollar more if they’re lucky. In that time alone their rent would have went up by 200 dollars or more and they have only earned a buck more an hour. Even now with companies claiming they must raise prices to stay afloat and news stories focus on middle classes trying to get by what do you think low income people are doing? I heard Melody or Melanie Hobson say people will be earning 1100 a month on social security and that was living below the poverty level. I thought to myself I know people, way too many making less than that working right now. And that fact is scary not just to people making that but if the numbers come out the people making just above will start to wonder when will their pay bracket be the new low? And I think that’s one reason we as a country really never bring it up, we’re too close to THAT truth.
So I’m proposing that we come with a living wage, and fuck trying to stroke these corporate pigs’ dicks any longer. The problem isn’t we can, it’s that they don’t want to. It’s the reason why illegals are working now, it’s the reason why jobs are shipped overseas. None of these companies want to pay their workers a decent wage. Sad thing is it makes them look worst as people if we just placed that light their direction. Its pure economics, we see it every year on tv with companies wanting your tax return money. The more one makes the more one spends, plan and simple. All jobs will benefit from a wage increase, restaurants because more people will eat out, hotels and car rentals because more people will travel, retail more everything will be bought then, and do we need to even bring up bills….. So why not come with a living wage and let all the chips fall in all of our pockets?
The proof is in the pudding so to speak, just take a look at Katrina for the cold hard truth. Notice how Bush was cool with being labeled racist just to keep the focus away from the working poor? Why, well because race is to battle but when you start talking about a class of people who work hard and come away with next to nothing then that net catches a lot fish. The fact Obama may not even get to make a living wage this term, if he gets re-elected, is because so much focus is on those stimulus checks he just pushed. But we need to do something and do it fast. It may never happen because we have all but said if you work a low paying job it falls on you and no one else but you. And I totally agree, but where I take objection at is the pay scale which people fall victim to. I think it the worst fact that one can work these low paying jobs for 5 to 6 and make maybe a dollar more if they’re lucky. In that time alone their rent would have went up by 200 dollars or more and they have only earned a buck more an hour. Even now with companies claiming they must raise prices to stay afloat and news stories focus on middle classes trying to get by what do you think low income people are doing? I heard Melody or Melanie Hobson say people will be earning 1100 a month on social security and that was living below the poverty level. I thought to myself I know people, way too many making less than that working right now. And that fact is scary not just to people making that but if the numbers come out the people making just above will start to wonder when will their pay bracket be the new low? And I think that’s one reason we as a country really never bring it up, we’re too close to THAT truth.
So I’m proposing that we come with a living wage, and fuck trying to stroke these corporate pigs’ dicks any longer. The problem isn’t we can, it’s that they don’t want to. It’s the reason why illegals are working now, it’s the reason why jobs are shipped overseas. None of these companies want to pay their workers a decent wage. Sad thing is it makes them look worst as people if we just placed that light their direction. Its pure economics, we see it every year on tv with companies wanting your tax return money. The more one makes the more one spends, plan and simple. All jobs will benefit from a wage increase, restaurants because more people will eat out, hotels and car rentals because more people will travel, retail more everything will be bought then, and do we need to even bring up bills….. So why not come with a living wage and let all the chips fall in all of our pockets?
Let the music play
Fri, 28th August, 2009
So I been gather records and playing songs since yesterday (Saturday), and still have a lot to listen to as I have no real shit to do. I have come across some Cissy Houston albums and I have to say it’s some hot shit. I can hear the influence for Whitney whole style, I swear there were times I forgot who I was listening to while playing the album. I also found some David Porter and I always heard that David was better when in the group Sam and Dave, he also was a longtime calibrator with the Isaac Hayes during Stax Records early years while David was a part of the popular duo Sam and Dave.
While I just listened and then went thru my sample gathering motion I found a lot of songs to be just very slept on. I asked one of my boys did they ever come across any Cissy stuff that wasn’t gospel music? His reply was more than anything wanting me to send him a few tracks. I figured I had listened to the albums four times during the day. I had my The Shield dvd in and it went around twice. Did I waste a day? Maybe, but I did learn and enjoyed myself in the process.
While I just listened and then went thru my sample gathering motion I found a lot of songs to be just very slept on. I asked one of my boys did they ever come across any Cissy stuff that wasn’t gospel music? His reply was more than anything wanting me to send him a few tracks. I figured I had listened to the albums four times during the day. I had my The Shield dvd in and it went around twice. Did I waste a day? Maybe, but I did learn and enjoyed myself in the process.
Hovi Baby
Fri, 28th August, 2009
So I got a hold of the Jay Z joint ‘DOA’ and the shit is nothing but nails. Hands down the best new shit I’ve heard other than that “DP3’ (Dead Presidents 3) verse, yeah I’m in the section of “Brooklyn Go Hard” and “Jockin’ Jay z” haters and I’m proud of it. Glad someone addressed the issue of this auto tune shit who not only is in the game but boldly and somewhat odd associates with most of the artist doing it. Something about that is what makes Jay a different artist all together. Not to mention the fact Kanye was placing that shit on Jay’s verses on some song. Enough to say it has them doing more shit, this is what I read a few months back about the issue.
So what’s really funny and sad is now DJs across the country will start saying on air out loud what the hood has been saying more months to years depending where you live and how the “style” has affected music in their area. And that is the shit is pure bio hazard bad, I mean it takes no talent to use it and sing, if you call it that at all really. So now the game will be looked at crazy for one reason all the new songs, Hip Hop or R&B, male or female, are putting their cds out at this moment. I’m sure some DJs who are too shook to say shit they feel will claim Hov is hating and is out the loop now. I’m sure his peers who have been in the game as long will do the same, just look at Nas and the Hip Hop Is Dead thing, they hate where the game is as well but didn’t want to come off as OLD so they turned on him in that matter. Back to the DJS who will now speak up like big ass grown men who were robbed by a midget, only after the guys rep has turned to folklore. Everyone now is going to claim they hate auto tune the same dudes and chicks who convinced you that a lot of those songs were the shit and it was a must have on your apple player will now disown the music like a biracial baby mothered by blue blood socialites and father by her Mexican non English speaking out of shape pool boy. If you would have spoken up in the beginning Hov wouldn’t have had to say it and we as a public would have been spared the last year of all the BULLSHIT. I aim the “grow a pair” line to all DJs on the radio and making mixtapes.
So what’s really funny and sad is now DJs across the country will start saying on air out loud what the hood has been saying more months to years depending where you live and how the “style” has affected music in their area. And that is the shit is pure bio hazard bad, I mean it takes no talent to use it and sing, if you call it that at all really. So now the game will be looked at crazy for one reason all the new songs, Hip Hop or R&B, male or female, are putting their cds out at this moment. I’m sure some DJs who are too shook to say shit they feel will claim Hov is hating and is out the loop now. I’m sure his peers who have been in the game as long will do the same, just look at Nas and the Hip Hop Is Dead thing, they hate where the game is as well but didn’t want to come off as OLD so they turned on him in that matter. Back to the DJS who will now speak up like big ass grown men who were robbed by a midget, only after the guys rep has turned to folklore. Everyone now is going to claim they hate auto tune the same dudes and chicks who convinced you that a lot of those songs were the shit and it was a must have on your apple player will now disown the music like a biracial baby mothered by blue blood socialites and father by her Mexican non English speaking out of shape pool boy. If you would have spoken up in the beginning Hov wouldn’t have had to say it and we as a public would have been spared the last year of all the BULLSHIT. I aim the “grow a pair” line to all DJs on the radio and making mixtapes.
Hip Hop 1988
Fri, 28th August, 2009
So it came to me like this, I was listening to my Jazzy Jeff “Hip Hop Forever 2” cd and heard “Made You Look” by Nas. And when the words “like we bringing 88 back.” were spoken it hit me hard as shit. I remember 88 for no other reason then it’s when I stayed the most trouble and to me Hip Hop could do no wrong. I mean when I think back to that year more than the golden era it self 88 was the best year hands down. Even the bad artist had some heat with them. Legends were born and the sound as well representation was expanded.
That was year Big Daddy became rookie of the year and problem for Rakim and KRS in every ones eyes. Biz was killing the party scene (I was way too young to know how the clubs felt) and Rob Base and EZ Rocks “It Takes Two” was still a Hip Hop song. Slick Rick did what Doug E. had already done and dropped the solo classic album. The west coast really came alive then, they were on the map but 88 they really made noise. The N.W.A crew dropped their front man Eazy-E solo album and then dropped the game changing “Straight out of Compton”. King T was bringing it and true west coast vets Ice T and Too Short made it on the pop radar. LL came with the now classic Moe Dee dis “Jack The Ripper”, which wasn’t on the “Walking With A Panther” album. Note: It was on the cassette version as well as a 7’ and 12’ single. Legends like Rakim, Boogie Down Production and Public Enemy avoided the sophomore jinx myth. Philly came with Jazzy Jeff and the Fresh Prince as well Three Times Dope, Cool C, Steady B and Schoolly D who was still putting in work. Connecticut had the Skinny Boys reppin. The south was held down by the then known as Luke Skywalker and the 2 Live Crew and the Geto Boys who were sick but the beats seemed dated a bit.
Ladies like Salt N Pepa, JJ Fad, The Real Roxanne and Lyte brought the goods Though Salt N Pepa attempted to be more radio friendly, which became their bread and butter from “Black Magic” on, on the second album the better tracks were the harder ones. But it was Lyte who shined that year proving she could hang with the men, her verse on “Self Destruction” is still one of the best parts of that song. I mean other than Salt N Pepa in those tight ass jeans with the rips in the “Shake Your Thang” video the females really didn’t try to sell the sex over the talent.
So I made a mixtape and the one thing I found to be in my face all these years was there wasn’t a coastal sound really. Hip Hop Was Hip Hop point blank. I mean even today the backdrop on “Straight Out Of Compton” isn’t that different from what the Bomb Squad did wit PE. Too Short and Rakim both rocked the shit out the “School Boy Crush” sample. Granted some production were more old school than others like again the Geto Boys or Schoolly D. Truthfully other than 2 Live Crew no one had a “sound”. The Jungle Brothers ran with house music, which at that time was Chi Town thing. And if I’m not correct EPMD gave birth to what we know as the West Coast sound with “You Gots To Chill”. It was the first time Zapp was used on a Hip Hop record. I guess that’s why 88 was such a good year, Hip Hop was Hip Hop. Everyone fed off one another as well as developed their own styles.
Now to be real I did have to check to make sure some tracks were 88 born. I mean I really got into N.W.A in 89 and that’s after hearing the D.O.C. Same for Poor Righteous Teachers and Hammers “Pump It Up” LP, I would’ve bet money they were 88 releases. In any event I put it together and you can download it rock it.
That was year Big Daddy became rookie of the year and problem for Rakim and KRS in every ones eyes. Biz was killing the party scene (I was way too young to know how the clubs felt) and Rob Base and EZ Rocks “It Takes Two” was still a Hip Hop song. Slick Rick did what Doug E. had already done and dropped the solo classic album. The west coast really came alive then, they were on the map but 88 they really made noise. The N.W.A crew dropped their front man Eazy-E solo album and then dropped the game changing “Straight out of Compton”. King T was bringing it and true west coast vets Ice T and Too Short made it on the pop radar. LL came with the now classic Moe Dee dis “Jack The Ripper”, which wasn’t on the “Walking With A Panther” album. Note: It was on the cassette version as well as a 7’ and 12’ single. Legends like Rakim, Boogie Down Production and Public Enemy avoided the sophomore jinx myth. Philly came with Jazzy Jeff and the Fresh Prince as well Three Times Dope, Cool C, Steady B and Schoolly D who was still putting in work. Connecticut had the Skinny Boys reppin. The south was held down by the then known as Luke Skywalker and the 2 Live Crew and the Geto Boys who were sick but the beats seemed dated a bit.
Ladies like Salt N Pepa, JJ Fad, The Real Roxanne and Lyte brought the goods Though Salt N Pepa attempted to be more radio friendly, which became their bread and butter from “Black Magic” on, on the second album the better tracks were the harder ones. But it was Lyte who shined that year proving she could hang with the men, her verse on “Self Destruction” is still one of the best parts of that song. I mean other than Salt N Pepa in those tight ass jeans with the rips in the “Shake Your Thang” video the females really didn’t try to sell the sex over the talent.
So I made a mixtape and the one thing I found to be in my face all these years was there wasn’t a coastal sound really. Hip Hop Was Hip Hop point blank. I mean even today the backdrop on “Straight Out Of Compton” isn’t that different from what the Bomb Squad did wit PE. Too Short and Rakim both rocked the shit out the “School Boy Crush” sample. Granted some production were more old school than others like again the Geto Boys or Schoolly D. Truthfully other than 2 Live Crew no one had a “sound”. The Jungle Brothers ran with house music, which at that time was Chi Town thing. And if I’m not correct EPMD gave birth to what we know as the West Coast sound with “You Gots To Chill”. It was the first time Zapp was used on a Hip Hop record. I guess that’s why 88 was such a good year, Hip Hop was Hip Hop. Everyone fed off one another as well as developed their own styles.
Now to be real I did have to check to make sure some tracks were 88 born. I mean I really got into N.W.A in 89 and that’s after hearing the D.O.C. Same for Poor Righteous Teachers and Hammers “Pump It Up” LP, I would’ve bet money they were 88 releases. In any event I put it together and you can download it rock it.