Top 5 Dangerous black people in America #1

And now we come to number one. Madam Secretary Dr. Condoleezza Rice. What can I say about her. I think she's my new crush. This woman is a mutant. Enrolled in college by 15, a classically trained pianist, and she loves football. Now just imagine if she stopped playing classical music and started playing jazz..... Recently Dick Morris thinks she should run in 2008 against Hillary. I say she should do it. Damnit I think she can change the world. Cut that perm girl and grow some locks.



Origin: Born November 14, 1954 in Birmingham, Alabama, the only child of Angelena Rice and the Reverend John Wesley Rice, Jr. Her father became a minister at Westminster Presbyterian Church and her mother was a music teacher. She was born the same year as the landmark Brown v. Board of Education decision. Rice was eight when her schoolmate Denise McNair was killed in the bombing of the primarily African-American Sixteenth Street Baptist Church by white supremacists on September 15, 1963. Rice states that growing up during segregation taught her determination against adversity, and the need to be "twice as good" as non-minorities. She earned her bachelor's degree in political science, cum laude and Phi Beta Kappa, from the University of Denver in 1974 (where she enrolled at the age of 15); her master's degree from the University of Notre Dame in 1975; and her Ph.D. from the Graduate School of International Studies at the University of Denver in 1981. While in Denver, Dr. Rice attended a course on international politics taught by Josef Korbel. The course sparked her interest in the Soviet Union and international relations, leading her to call Korbel "one of the most central figures in my life." Rice joined the faculty of Stanford University in 1981 and became a tenured professor of political science. At Stanford, she was a member of the Center for International Security and Arms Control, Senior Fellow of the Institute for International Studies and and between 1985 and 1986 a national fellow at the Hoover Institution. In 1986, while an international affairs fellow of the Council on Foreign Relations, Rice served as Special Assistant to the Director of the Joint Chiefs of Staff where she worked on nuclear strategic planning.

From 1989 through March 1991 (the period of the fall of Berlin wall and the final days of the Soviet Union), she served in the George Herbert Walker Bush Administration as Director, and then Senior Director, of Soviet and East European Affairs in the National Security Council, and as a Special Assistant to the President for National Security Affairs. In May 1991 she was named a director, of the Chevron Corporation.

In this position, she helped formulate the strategy of President Bush and Secretary James A. Baker III in favour of German reunificatiom. She so impressed President Bush that he introduced her to Mikhail Gorbachev as the one who "tells me everything I know about the Soviet Union."

After working for Bush senior she returned to Stanford in 1991. In 1993 she was appointed Stanford Provost, becoming the youngest person in the position as well as first woman and first non-white. She held the position until 1999. In 1999 she resigns her provostship at Stanford University to help with George HW Bush's campaign. In July of the same year she is appointed senior fellow, Hoover Institute. In January 2001 she resigned as a director of Chevron, and was appointed National Security Advisor for GW Bush.

First Appearance: While an international affairs fellow of the Council on Foreign Relations. Rice served as Special Assistant to the Director of the Joint Chiefs of Staff where she worked on nuclear strategic planning. (1986) When her fellowship ended she returned to Stanford.

Powers: She has the power to send young men and women off to their death. The Secretary serves as principal adviser to the President in the determination and execution of U.S. foreign policy and in recent decades has become responsible for overall direction, coordination, and supervision of interdepartmental activities of the U.S. Government overseas, except for certain military activities. She speaks speaks Russian, French, and Spanish also. Rumor has it her pussy is made out of Kryptonite.

Potential for Danger: She's FOURTH IN LINE to succeed the Presidency. Meaning she's basically two bad plane crashes and a heart attack away from the Presidency of the United States. She is America's face overseas. In every US embassy of in the world there is a picture of the President and a picture of the Secretary of State. Imagine if she started giving GW Bush advice that would help black people and he listened. Imagine if she came up with a plan to get the continent of Africa out of debt. And even more so than Oprah she can convince women that they can run the world. Now how scary is that.

Weaknesses: Her crush on GW Bush, fibroids, and football .

Group Affiliations: Former director of the Chevron Corporationthe Charles Schwab Corporation, the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation, the University of Notre Dame, the International Advisory Council of J.P. Morgan and the San Francisco Symphony Board of Governors. She was a Founding Board member of the Center for a New Generation, an educational support fund for schools in East Palo Alto and East Menlo Park, California and was Vice President of the Boys and Girls Club of the Peninsula . In addition, her past board service has encompassed such organizations as Transamerica Corporation, Hewlett Packard, the Carnegie Corporation, Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, The Rand Corporation, the National Council for Soviet and East European Studies, the Mid-Peninsula Urban Coalition and KQED, public broadcasting for San Francisco.

Top 5 Dangerous black people in America #2

Coming in at number two. Richard D. Parsons. I know you're asking yourself; WHO the hell is Richard D. Parsons? He's the CEO of AOL-Time Warner. He's flown under the radar for about thirty years but now we're gonna put him on blast.

Richard D. Parsons


Origin: Born April 4, 1948. A native of Brooklyn, New York, Parsons graduated from the University of Hawaii, where he played varsity basketball. He earned a law degree from Albany Law School. He caught the eye of the late Nelson A. Rockefeller out of law school, after he nailed the top score (1971) on the New York State bar exam. Parsons even lived in Rockefeller's compound for a time and became a trustee of his assets after the former vice president's death (1979). Parsons served as a lawyer for New York governor Nelson Rockefeller and followed Rockefeller to Washington when he became vice president in 1974. In 1977 Parsons returned to New York and joined Wall Street law firm Patterson, Belknap. A former law partner of Rudolph W. Giuliani, Parsons managed Giuliani's transition into the New York mayor's office. He was appointed to the Time Warner board in 1991 and was offered the chief executive job by Levin. He left the firm to become president of Dime Savings Bank. He became the bank's CEO, seeing it through a merger with Anchor Savings Bank. In 1995 he became president of Time Warner, helping negotiate its merger with America Online, which created a $165-billion media empire in 2000. In December 2001 AOL Time Warner CEO Gerald Levin announced plans to retire in May 2002 and declared that Parsons would succeed him. The move surprised many media watchers who assumed that AOL Time Warner chief operating officer Robert Pittman would take the helm. Also in 2001, President Bush selected Parson to cochair a commission on Social Security. In addition, Parsons worked on the transition team for Michael Bloomberg, who was elected mayor of New York City in 2001.

First Appearance: Served as a lawyer for New York governor Nelson Rockefeller (1972)

Powers: Great business sense. Has a the power to fly under the radar and avoid the glass ceiling that most African-Americans face in corporate America.

Potential for Danger: If Richard D. Parsons turned militant it would probably solve the black unemployment problem in America and hook black people up with cable for life. Rumor has it he's working on a mind control device that will be placed in Time Warner cable boxes, that will send out subliminal messages to white America to hire more African-Americans.

Weaknesses: None that we know of.

Group Affiliations: Chairman of the Apollo Theatre Foundation, and also serves on the boards of Citigroup, Estee Lauder, the Colonial Williamsburg Foundation, the Museum of Modern Art, Howard University and the Committee to Encourage Corporate Philanthropy.

Please stay tuned because Friday we reveal number one.

Top 5 Dangerous black people in America #3

Coming in at number three....Oprah Winfrey. What can I say about Oprah she is one of the most powerful people in the media today. Oprah is scary now but imagine her as an angry black nationalist feminist.

Oprah Winfrey


Origin: Oprah Gail Winfrey (born 29 January 1954 in Kosciusko, Mississippi) was born to humble beginnings -- her unmarried teenage parents were a housemaid, Vernita Lee, and a soldier, Vernon Winfrey. Oprah began her broadcasting career at WVOL radio in Nashville while still in high school. At the age of 19, she became the youngest person and the first African-American woman to anchor the news at Nashville's WTVF-TV. She then relocated to Baltimore's WJZ-TV to co-anchor the Six O'Clock News and later went on to become co-host of its local talk show, People Are Talking. In 1986, her local Chicago daytime talk show, called The Oprah Winfrey Show (and later abbreviated to Oprah), debuted nationally. Originally, the show followed traditional talk show formats. By the mid 1990s, however, the format became more serious, addressing issues that Winfrey thought were of direct importance and of crucial consequence to women. Winfrey began to do a lot of charity work, and her show featured people suffering from poverty or the victims of unfortunate accidents.

The Oprah Winfrey Show has remained the number one talk show for 18 consecutive seasons*. Produced by her own production company, Harpo Productions, Inc., the show is seen by an estimated 30 million viewers a week in the United States** and is broadcast internationally in 111 countries.

First Appearance: WVOL radio in Nashville.

Powers: Co-owner of the Oxygen cable network, Owner of O magazine (one of the most lucrative magazines in terms of advertising), Host of one of the highest rated talk shows in America. Oprah has a Jim Jones esque quality in where she has a cult like following among women. Every book Oprah has chosen for her book of the month club has gone on to become a bestseller. She could virtually shut down all the pussy in America without any trouble.

Potential for Danger: If Oprah became militant her potential for danger would be incredible. Imagine if she told her followers to start reading books like Soul on Ice, The Fire Next Time, and The Coldest Winter Ever. The results would be astounding. She could use the Oxygen network forward an agenda of upliftment and nationalism if she so choose. She could use O magazine to push forward a program of self awareness instead of recipes and home and garden tips.

Weaknesses: It takes her three hours to put on her make up and Stedman Graham.

Group Affiliations: King World Entertainment, HARPO Productions and Oxygen Media, Inc.

Top 5 Dangerous black people in America #4

And now we move on to number four. Imgaine if you will a militant Jay-Z.



Origin: Shawn Carey Carter was born on December 4, 1969 in Brooklyn, raised in Marcy Housing Development, Jay-Z underwent some tough times after his father left his mother before the young rapper was even a teen. Without a man in the house, he became a self-supportive youth, turning to the streets, where he soon made a name for himself as a fledging rapper. Known as "Jazzy" in his neighborhood, he soon shortened his nickname to Jay-Z and did all he could to break into the rap game. Of course, as he vividly discusses in his lyrics, Jay-Z also became a street hustler at this time, doing what needed to be done to make money. For a while, he ran around with Jaz-O, aka Big Jaz, a small-time New York rapper with a record deal but few sales. From Jaz he learned how to navigate through the rap industry and what moves to make. He also participated in a forgotten group called Original Flavor for a short time. Jay-Z subsequently decided to make an untraditional decision and start his own label rather than sign with an established label like Jaz had done. Together with friends Damon Dash and Kareem "Biggs" Burke, he created Roc-a-Fella Records, a risky strategy for cutting out the middleman and making money for himself. Of course, he needed a quality distributor, and when he scored a deal with Priority Records (and then later Def Jam), Jay-Z finally had everything in place, including a debut album, Reasonable Doubt (1996).

First Appearance: This Is How It Is by Original Flavor (1992)

Powers: Incredible rhyming skills, great business sense, owns his own clothing line.

Potential for Danger: Jay-Z's potential for danger is very great. He has the power to make young suburban white kids to dress like thugs and get stopped by the cops. He has the business sense of a wall street mogul and a street hustler. If militant he would be able to use his rhyming skills and business sense to uplift the community and promote education instead of vodka and cars.

Weaknesses: Baby mama drama, and I got two letters for ya Jigga DL (we all know Beyonce has a dick.)

Group Affiliations: Island Def Jam and Roc-A-Fella records

Top 5 Dangerous black people in America #5

What if Bill Cosby became militant? How dangerous would he be? Imagine.
Coming in at number five we have none other than:

Bill Cosby



Origin: William Henry Cosby, Jr. (born July 12, 1937 Philadelphia, PA.) Left high school without earning his diploma and joined the U.S. Navy in 1956. While enlisted he passed a high school equivalency exam, and after his discharge he received an athletic scholarship to Temple University in Philadelphia in 1961. During his sophomore year he left Temple to entertain at the Gaslight Cafe in Greenwich Village, New York City, where he began to establish a trademark comedic style characterized by a friendly and accessible stage persona and a relaxed, carefully timed delivery that put white people at ease. During the 1960s Cosby toured major U.S. and Canadian cities, as he gained popularity he commanded higher performance fees. In 1965 he stared in the espionage series I Spy (1965-68) playing the black sidekick to Robert Culp, making him the first black actor to perform in a starring dramatic role on network television.

Cosby's subsequent projects for television included the series of Bill Cosby Specials (1968-71, 1975), the situation comedy The Bill Cosby Show (1969-71), the variety show The New Bill Cosby Show (1972-73), and the successful cartoon Fat Albert and the Cosby Kids (1972-84, 1989). By 1984 Cosby had infiltrated the system to a such an extent that he the power to produce a show in where a successful black doctor was married to a equally successful black woman lawyer and support a family of 5 in Brooklyn. The Cosby Show convinced white people that black folks could be just as normal as they could.

First Appearance: The Tonight Show with Johnny Carson (1963)

Powers: Lots and lots of money, and good public speaking skills.

Potential for Danger: If Cosby became more militant he would not be the most dangerous, but he would certainly make more of a dent in the system. Bill Cosby is one of the few wealthy black men in America who actively gives back to the community, by sending countless young men and women to college. In the 1990's he made an attempt to buy NBC. If that deal went through Arsenio Hall would still be on late night TV til today. Imagine what the progaming would have been like. I'll tell you one thing the casts of Friends and Seinfeld would have been a little more colorful. Today Cosby's message is one of self improvement and reinforcing education. Imagine if black people actually listened to what he's saying and acted upon it? The results would be astounding.

Weaknesses: Loose women and jello pudding, in that order.

Group Affiliations: Omega Psi Phi Fraternity Incorporated.

Fringe Thursday 2-3-05

If there is any man who is on the fringe it's Saul Williams. His groundbreaking work as a writer and actor in the critically accliamed film, Slam (Sundance's Grand Jury Prize '98) placed him as a figurehead of the spoken word/poetry slam movement. Since staring in Slam he's made several film appearances in addition to being an author of three collections of poetry: The Seventh Octave: The early writings of Saul Williams (1997), She (1999), ,said the shotgun to the head (2003) .

He's also a alternative hip hop recording artist: Amethyst Rock Star (2001) and Saul Williams (2004).

Born in Newburgh, N.Y. (1972) this son of a preacher and and school teacher mother graduated from Morehouse College with a B.A. in philosophy, then moved to New York City to take a Master's Degree at New York University in Acting.

I've had the chance to see him live and he's an incredible performer if he ever comes to your town I suggest you see him. CNN recently caught up to him and this is what he had to say about the state of hip hop.

CNN: What's wrong with hip-hop?

SAUL WILLIAMS: The only reason I've been so critical of hip-hop is because I've always been aware of the effect that it has, and the reflection that it gives of the African-American community. I remember back in the day when Chuck D called hip-hop the "black people's CNN." Well now, hip-hop is more like Fox News. It's biased, and highly suspect. Hip-hop is still cool at a party. But to me, hip-hop has never been strictly a party; it is also there to elevate consciousness. What's wrong with hip-hop is the system that controls the definition of it. There needs to be more balance on the airwaves. I mean look at Eminem, getting airplay on rock radio. Does he get airplay on rock radio because he's a rock musician? No, it's because rock radio pictures itself as white radio. We just need to broaden our definitions of ourselves and then about the music. Hip-hop is too young to put a definition on it.

Hip Hop Wednesday 2-2-05

What is the difference between a rapper and an MC?

A rapper rhymes but an MC moves the crowd. Simple isn't it? Well it isn't.
Anyone can rhyme, but who's controlling the crowd? Ja Rule? No offense Ja but, I don't think so.
The consensus in the hip hop community is that rappers do it for the money and MC's (Emcees) do it for the love of the game. Here's one differnce Rappers don't battle. MC's battle. An MC is familar with all the five elements of hip hop. A rapper wouldn't be able to name one.

Next Week: When did hip hop start?

Black History Month (Warning)

Carter G. Woodson the Father of Black History Month


Today America's descendants of slaves begin to commemorate what is known as Black History Month.

Carter G. Woodson is credited for it's existence. I'm sure he would be rolling over in his grave if he saw what it has been reduced to. Please don't be fooled by the picture, he was a black man. Woodson chose February because even though the 13th Amendment (y'all know this amendment it's the one that abolished slavery) was signed in January, slaves did not start to hear of the news until February.

This month in honor of Black History Month, or as I like to call it. "28 days of white guilt." I will be exposing a lot of hypocritical sh*t. Hypocritical sh*t that Black people do and Hypocritical sjit that White people do. And everyone else in between. Some of what I'm going to say is going to offend a lot of people and some of what I say this month will (hopefully) enlighten you. I hope that what I say doesn't ruin any friendships and I hope some comments posted here don't offend anyone.

So what do I have planned? Glad you asked. First off there will be a lot of ranting and not that many hyperlinks. And there will be plenty of lists. For example, I will be listing the following:

• America's most dangerous Black people (It's not what you think.)
• The top five reasons why black people think there is a conspiracy against them.
• The top five secrets black people keep from white people.

These are just a few of the topics that we will be tackling this month. Remember this is all in good fun with a hint of truth to it.

The Oscars Part II: Who got screwed?

So, let's just cut to the chase. The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences has a long history of screwing people over when it comes to the honor of being nominated. This year was no different than others. The following is short list of who got screwed.

Paul Giamatti (Sideways) - Tops the list this year. There is no one who deserves an Oscar nomination more than Paul Giamatti. In the role of Miles Raymond, a thirty something divorcee/struggling writer, Giamatti embodied the lost hope and confusion that most 30 something males feel.

James Caviezel (The Passion of the Christ) - Jim is credited for doing the best portrayal of Jesus since Jeffrey Hunter in King of Kings. Passion of the Christ was one of last years most controversial movies it didn't get nominated for any major awards unless you count BEST MAKEUP, BEST ORIGINAL SCORE, and BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY as major.

Mel Gibson (The Passion of the Christ) - I actually feel for Mel on this one. The man put his heart and soul into this movie and what happens his anti-Semitic father comes out the wood work and says something smart.

Quentin Tarintino (Kill Bill Vol. 2) - QT got screwed big time in my opinion because Vol. 1 was just too violent and Vol. 2 was too wordy and too tongue and cheek for the academy's taste.

Walter Salles (The Motorcycle Diaries) - Walter Salles did a fantasic job and for the Academy not to notice is a crime. I've never seen a director use a continent as a character for a film.

The Ocsars Part I: The nominees

The Nominees for Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences where announced Tuesday January 25, 2005. Here are the nominees.

BEST PICTURE

"The Aviator" - Martin Scorsese and Leonardo DiCaprio's epic tale of the early days of Howard Hughes. This movie didn't really impress me too much but based on the scale, size and the execution it does deserve to be nominated.

"Finding Neverland" - I don't know why this movie is nominated. In this drama, we are told the story of how James M. Barrie came up with the play Peter Pan. Johnny Depp plays the role of author James M. Barrie.

"Million Dollar Baby" - I personally haven't seen this movie nor do I intend to. There is a ton of hype surrounding this movie. The plot is about a boxing trainer who's burnt out and a female boxer who needs someone to believe in her. To be blunt this is some white trash melodrama BS with Morgan Freeman thrown in as the magical negro who helps Eastwood and Swank figure it all out.

"Ray" - The story of Ray Charles. This is movie didn't make my list of the year's best, but this movie does deserve the nomination. Jamie Foxx plays the role of Ray Charles to perfection.

"Sideways" - A funny movie about two friends on a wine tasting road trip. Paul Giamatti got screwed by the Academy on this one, but I'll get to that later.


DIRECTOR

Martin Scorsese, "The Aviator" - They should just give it to him already. How many times has Scorsese been passed over. Just give it to him already.

Clint Eastwood, "Million Dollar Baby" - You sir are a relic. You have enough awards and you need to just take a break for a while.

Taylor Hackford, "Ray" - Good job sir. But you're in stiff competition.

Alexander Payne, "Sideways" - See what I said to Taylor Hackford. It goes double for you.

Mike Leigh, "Vera Drake" - Could you just lighten up? Seriously can you just make a f*cking comedy just once? For those of you who don't know Mike Leigh just see Leaving Las Vegas. Vera Drake is a story of a old woman who used to "help" women in "trouble" out. Basically she induced miscarrages in the days in where abortion was illegal. I guess Mike Leigh's job on the set was to pass out wire hangers.


ACTOR IN A LEADING ROLE

Don Cheadle, "Hotel Rwanda" - Thanks Don you just canceled out Jamie Foxx. I'm sure you deserve this nomination but you just handicaped Foxx.

Johnny Depp, "Finding Neverland" - Weren't you nominated last year? What is it with you?

Leonardo DiCaprio, "The Aviator" - Good job Leo. For a minute when I was watching you play Howard Hughs I found myself feeling sorry for a millionare. Now that's some acting fo yo ass right there.

Clint Eastwood, "Million Dollar Baby" - Clint, what the fuck? Seriously you know that you're there only because the Academy didn't have the balls to nominate James Caviezel right? You're in Jesus's spot. I hope you can sleep well at night knowing that you're in Jesus's spot.

Jamie Foxx, "Ray" - Thanks Jamie you just handicaped Don Cheadle. Just kidding dawg. You'll probably get it for Colatteral. Smart move by the way. Just one question...Why are you going to be Tubbs in the Miami Vice movie?


ACTRESS IN A LEADING ROLE

Annette Bening, "Being Julia" - Wow you got nominated for playing a washed up actress. The jokes just write themselves there don't they.

Catalina Sandino Moreno, "Maria Full of Grace" - You got nominated for playing drug "mule". Heh and they say there are no roles with integrity for women in Hollywood.

Imelda Staunton, "Vera Drake" - I'm so glad that the red states don't have a say in who gets nominated for an Oscar.

Hilary Swank, "Million Dollar Baby" - Didn't you win already? Look if you win could you stop your husband from crying like a little bitch?

Kate Winslet, "Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind" - You're my favorite to win. How many times did you change your hair color during the shoot?


ACTOR IN A SUPPORTING ROLE

Alan Alda, "The Aviator" - Glad to see you working again Hawkeye.

Thomas Haden Church, "Sideways" - Weren't you on Wings? Damn boy you done come up. YOU BETTER THANK Paul Giamatti in your acceptance speech.

Jamie Foxx, "Collateral" - Good job. Don't do any cart wheels when you win ok?

Morgan Freeman, "Million Dollar Baby" - Do you have any magical powers? You always seem to be playing the magical negro. Why is that?

Clive Owen, "Closer" - Just become the new James Bond already. JEEZ. By the way what do Natalie Portman's boobs look like?


ACTRESS IN A SUPPORTING ROLE

Cate Blanchett, "The Aviator" - Good impression of Katharine Hepburn.

Laura Linney, "Kinsey" - Sorry I didn't get to see your movie.

Virginia Madsen, "Sideways" - Good luck. How much wine did you drink on the set?

Sophie Okendo, "Hotel Rwanda" - See what I said to Laura Linney.

Natalie Portman, "Closer" - Ahhh you played a lying stripper. What was that I said about good roles for women in Hollywood?


ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY

John Logan, "The Aviator" - Eh you did ok.

Charlie Kaufman, Michel Gondry and Pierre Bismuth, "Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind" - Charlie you are a genius and everyone who shares this nomination with you is just riding your coat tails.

Keir Pearson and Terry George, "Hotel Rwanda" - You guys tried to tell a good story about a country no one in America actually cares about. There is something to be said for that, but I just don't know what it is.

Brad Bird, "The Incredibles" - Good stuff sir.

Mike Leigh, "Vera Drake" - CHEER UP JEEZ!


ADAPTED SCREENPLAY

Richard Linklater, Julie Delpy, Ethan Hawke and Kim Krizan, "Before Sunset" - Rich, where have you been? I haven't seen you since Slackers.

David Magee, "Finding Neverland" - BOOO!

Paul Haggis, "Million Dollar Baby" - WHY? Seriously WHY?

José Rivera, "The Motorcycle Diaries" - Good stuff.

Alexander Payne and Jim Taylor, "Sideways" - Good job guys I'm pulling for ya.


DOCUMENTARY FEATURE

"Born Into Brothels" - Nice title.

"The Story of the Weeping Camel" - Bad title.

"Super Size Me" - You are my favorite to win.

"Tupac: Resurrection" - Dead men don't win Oscars. Sorry Pac.

"Twist of Faith" - Sorry didn't see your movie. A man confronts the trauma of past sexual abuse as a boy by a Catholic priest only to find his decision shatters his relationships with his family, community and faith. Damn no wonder the Academy didn't nominate the Passion of the Christ.

Tomorrow - The Oscars Part II: Who got screwed?

Hip Hop Wednesday 1-26-05

What ever happened to Lauryn Hill?

Remember Lauryn Hill? She won five out of ten grammys in one night. And followed that up by releasing an unplugged album that sounded like a therapy session.

Recently she's been working with Kanye West (Kanye's has been nominated for 10 grammy's this year)

It's good to see that she's finally gotten over herself and got her her butt back in the studio.

Jimi Izrael has an interesting take on Mr. West and Ms. Hill's place in the mainstream.

Next Week: What is the difference between a rapper and an MC?

My Interview with Sabina from Brazilian Girls

Brazilian Girls are a underground downtown group that's been stuggling for a while now. Recently they've been getting some serious exposure on iTunes. I recently just got a chance to sit down and chat with the internationally known Diva front woman of the group Sabina.

Brazilian Girls will be playing a tsunami benifit this Wednesday at Canal Room located at 295 West Broadway.

How would you describe your sound?:
-post-wave meta-electro glam

What instruments do you play?
-piano, laptop, very very little guitar

How long have you been singing?
-since i was three

The outfits you wear in concert are hot where do you shop?
-mostly it's put together from no-budget things, some stuff friends gave/made for me.

Lazy Lover who is that about? (you don't have to answer that one if you don't want to)
- about you!!and many others. about the american people right this moment.

How was the tour in Europe? Did you get to go back home?
- t'was lovely. yes, i visited my mom in germland and saw lots of friends in france and italy.

How many languages do you speak and sing in?
- 5.5 ( my portugues isn;t as fluent)

What was the last CD you bought in a store?
-tom waits : real gone

What was the last book your read?
-franz kafka's: amerika (******),
paul watzlawik's :' the situation is hopeless, but not serious -
the pursuit of unhappiness (*******)
and now bob dylans 'chronicles'. (*******) very very recommended

What are you plans for the future?
- make love, music and babys (as me'shell so appropriately would put it)

Do you plan to release previous recorded music (e.g. A thin line)?
- who knows, don;t really think so.

Fringe Thursday 1-20-05

C.S. Lewis' "The Chronicles of Narnia." is the next big thing this year.

I guess this is Disney's answer to Lord of the Rings.

The movie is based on a series of books by C.S. Lewis. The Chronicles of Narnia (better known as The Lion The Witch and the Wardrobe) tells the story of Peter, Susan, Edmund, and Lucy, who are separated from their parents in London during the German air raids of World War II. They are sent to the country for safety and find a magic wardrobe that transports them to the mystical world of Narnia, a once peaceful land of talking beasts, dwarfs and giants. However, Narnia has been frozen by the evil White Witch, and the kids must help the lion Aslan break her spell.

Apple has a behind the scenes trailer here

Hip Hop Wednesday 1-19-05

The future = The Game


In last week's rant I talked about Who is Old School. This week I want to discuss the Future and Giving Props and Name Dropping. Which brings me to Compton's own The Game (aka Jayceon Taylor). In his album titled the Documentary he manages to give props to the likes of the late Eazy-E, (when's the last time you've heard Eazy-E mentioned on a record), Tupac (saw that one coming), and Bigge Smalls (showing love for the east coast).

Compton's own The Game got his name from his grandmother "because he was game for anything" as a kid but when he went to high school things changed.

"But once I got to high school that shit was out. My brothers were gangbangin and I just followed in their footsteps."

In 2001 he was shot seven times and left for dead while in the hospital he reevaluated his life and listened intently to music by N.W.A. and Kool G Rap and to classic hip-hop albums like Biggie Smalls's "Ready to Die," Jay-Z's "Reasonable Doubt," Snoop's "Doggystyle" and Tupac Shakur's "All Eyez on Me." And he taught himself to rap. Eventually he got on the mixtape circuit and built up an underground following. He was passed over by some of the top record companies in the industry (DefJam, Bad Boy, and The Inc.) Until he was discovered by Dr. Dre and Co. And the rest is history.

From what I've heard in his music and read in interviews about him he seems like he's had a troubled past. "It all started the day that my dad decided to molest my sisters, his own daughters.

His music tells the story of a troubled man trying to make sense of it all. The bottomline is that this album is good; the production is flawless but he does tend to sound like a cross between Kool G. Rap and Shyne from time to time. This shows that the 25 year old man has studied the greats. His delivery is the most clear out of any West Coast rapper to date.

I have to admit that I really didn't like him when I heard about his battles with Joe Budden and other rappers but you cannot deny talent. The Game is for real and his skill is just what the West Coast needs to be put back on the map. He's got a big mouth but he can back it up

Next week: What ever happened to Lauryn Hill?

Cosby in Detroit

America's favorite father is at it again folks.


Recently at while giving a speech in Detroit to a standing-room only crowd of about 1,800 people at Wayne County Community College District he urged parents to take responsibility for their children.

"And the poverty pimps and victim pimps keep telling the victims to stay where they are, 'You can't get up, you can't do this, you can't do that.' ...I'm telling you, you better get up."

Cosby is saying things that sound conservative but in reality what he's saying is quite afrocentric. Restoring pride is key in the uplift of a people I believe this wholeheartedly and it starts with the parents. Cosby's message is harsh and very controversial but his heart is in the right place.

Superman News

Who hasn't heard of Superman?


But who is this Brandon Routh?


Brandon Routh is Warner Bros. next Man of Steel. Routh was born in Des Moines, Iowa and grew up in nearby Norwalk. I guess they really grow those types out there.

Don't worry they've casted people we do know.

Fringe Thursday 1-13-05

First some side notes:

• Spider Man 3 has a new writer
• They are apparently remaking Tron.
  

Keanu Reeves as John Constantine?

I hope it works. Check out the trailer here.

Hip Hop Wednesday 1-12-05

• Panama Jackson goes off on Nelly.
• Andre Harrell is planning on producing HBO Drama On Hip-Hop
• The Game is on his way and MTV.com has a preview of one of the most anticipated albums of the year.

Today's rant: "Who is Old School?"

Well that depends on who you ask. If you ask a 30 year old chances are they will say, Kurtis Blow, Run-DMC, Slick Rick, Doug E. Fresh and Rakim. If you ask a 15 year old chances are they'll say Bigge Smalls (Notorious B.I.G.), Tupac, NWA and maybe they'll say A Tribe Called Quest or Public Enemy.

Notice something strange there? There's a generation gap in Hip-Hop. You have kids coming up who don't know who Kool G Rap, DJ Quik, Too Short, Scarface, Nice and Smooth or Boogie Down Productions are. You got kids out there thinking that Busta Rhymes started out as a solo artist, when in truth he did two albums with a group by the name of Leaders of the New School.

Perspective is key in this discussion. Before Nelly, Ludacris and Masta P were talking about how the South was so "dirty", there was Luke and 2 Live Crew, and Geto Boyz. Before Mobb Deep was grimey there was Das EFX, Redman, EPMD, and Onyx.

In order to appreciate how far this genre has come the young fans need to do some research. To gain some kind of perspective. How can you appreciate Snoop without listening to NWA? Trust me you will look at Dr. Dre a little differently if you listen to his early work with NWA.

This reminds me of the 80's when people thought G N'R was the greatest rock group of all time without listening to one Led Zep CD.

Next week: The Future - Giving Props and Name Dropping

In defense of Armstrong

Fallguy?

First off I have never been one to agree with Armstrong Williams. But this is one time in where I feel like he's getting the shaft.

"In 2003 Ketchum Communications contacted a small PR firm that I own, Graham Williams Group, to buy ad space on a television show that I own and host. The ad was to promote The Department of Education’s “No Child Left Behind” plan. I have long felt that school vouchers hold the greatest promise of ending the racial education gap in this country."

So let me get this right? You took money to air an ad on a show you own? To support a agenda that you already agree with? Doesn't sound like a problem to me. Here's where he made a "mistake in judgement"

"I now realize that I exercised poor judgment in continuing to write about a topic which my PR firm was being paid to promote."

Yeah you did Armstrong. But some how I feel a lot of people do what you did but they just don't get caught. If this was Pat Buchanan I don't think this would have happened.

Armstrong's mistake started when he took the money to back an agenda that he already agreed with. He should have done what the big boys do in Washington, and use the favor system. For those of you who don't know what I'm talking about I'll explain:

Armstrong does the job (for free) but cashes in on that favor on a later date. It almost worked for Rudy Giuliani's boy Bernard Kerik.

As a result of this scandal certain papers have nixed his column. And he could lose his TV show.

Meanwhile the White House has declared that this is an isolated incident.

It looks like Mother Nature is a little angry with us these days. Wouldn't ya say?

79 year old man charged with murder

You can get away with murder but only for so long. 40 years to be exact.

A Mississippi man was arrested for murder Thursday in connection to the 1964 killings of three civil rights workers (Michael Schwerner, James Chaney and Andrew Goodman) whose bodies were buried in an earthen dam outside the town of Philadelphia -- killings that spurred national support for the civil rights movement.

Edgar Ray Killen was charged with the being one of the many men who took part in the 1964 abduction and killing of three voter-registration volunteers by nightriders on a lonely rural road in Mississippi.

I can't express how much bulls*it this is. If you call yourself an American you should be just as outraged as I am. This guy is going to be 80 years old in jail and getting free health care all on the state's dime. So is this how justice works? You kill a man and then you get away with it for 40 years and then you get sent to jail when you're 79? So I guess we get the last few years when he's old and pitiful?

Sorry my fellow Americans but that is not justice. This is just the best law enforcement can do. And that is pretty damn sad.

And top it off the guy has the nerve to plead not guilty. Well I guess in his mind he saw these men as subhuman. Maybe that was his logic. I guess that's what my problem is with this guy and people like him. People like him feel that anyone who isn't white isn't really a human being therefore they are not entitled to the same rights as he is. Last time I checked my calender it was 2004 it's amazing that it took 40 years to bring this man to justice.

It upsets me even more that this is what we settle for as justice.

Here are some plugs

This one goes out to my friend Bob and his wife Simone.

If you're looking for affordable gift baskets try going to A Token of my Affection.com

This one goes out to my friend Josh. MacAdept is a company that provides its clients with cost-effective creative solutions for your PC or Mac problems. I've used his services on several occasions and I must say that he's efficient and professional.

Fringe Thursday 1/6/05

Let's start things off with a shameless plug for my friend Angry Dan. Nothingface is a new graphic novel from digital webbing. Digital Webbing is a good outlet for up can coming artists who are interested in getting into the comic business.

From what I gather it's about a guy named Jon Novak, who can morph himself into whomever he comes into contact with. But there are three catches: One, it hurts him, two, he may absorb more then just the appearance of his template through the transformation, and three… if he isn’t morphed into someone then he looks like a jack-o-lantern.

You can read a review of it here.

V for Vendetta


V for Vendetta takes place in an alternate future in which Germany wins WWII and Britain becomes a fascist state. A vigilante named "V" stalks the streets of London trying to free England of its ideological chains. This is probably one of Alan Moore's more popular graphic novels.

The Wachowski brothers and Joel Silver are bringing Alan Moore's V for Vendetta to the big screen. James McTeigue (First time director) will be at the helm. Natalie Portman has been signed on to star in the flim as a woman who formerly worked for the secret police but decides to help "V".

I hope they don't f*ck this one up. It's usually hit or miss when Hollywood trys to adapt Moore's work. From Hell was good but LXG was just awful. If Joel Silver is apart of this, you can bet your arse that sjit will be blowing up left and right.

The Wachowskis wrote the screenplay so that might not be bad but then again these guys need a hit as bad as Ricky Martin. There are still people out there who haven't forgiven them for last two Matrix movies.

Good luck guys maybe you can make it up to us and not screw the pooch on this one okay?

The Doctor is In!

So gald to be back. Sorry for not posting in so long but I've been kinda busy repairing my liver. Anyway, Playboy has some ideas for the iPod. Porn on the iPod. What will they think of next?

I know it's supposed to be Hip Hop Wednesday but I really don't have much to report outside of ODB's new album. I haven't picked up yet but I intend to.

And Star and Buc Wild are returning to morning radio starting Jan. 17.

This has nothing to do with hip hop but I'm sure it will piss off some rednecks just the same. Heidi Klum and Seal who knew?

PS. On an unrelated note: RIP Shirley Chisholm. Thank you for your years of service.

2005 Most Anticipated Movies

Rather than look back on 2004 I'd rather look ahead. Happy New Year folks. Enjoy.

Here is my list of the most anticipated movies of 2005.

Star Wars: Episode III: Revenge of the Sith: The final installment to the trilogy. No happy ending in this one folks. There will be a lot of death and destruction to go around.

Batman Begins: Warner Bros. reboots the Dark Knight with Christian Bale as Bruce Wayne.

Mr. and Mrs. Smith: Doug Liman serves us up some eye candy in the form of Brad Pitt and Angela Jolie. They play a pair of assassins who are married to each other but one doesn't know what the other one does for a living. They end up being each other's assignment.

Sin City: Robert Rodriguez brings Frank Miller's graphic novel to life. Here's the cast: Jessica Alba, Rosario Dawson, Elijah Wood, Bruce Willis, Benicio Del Toro, Michael Clarke Duncan, Josh Hartnett, Michael Madsen, Jaime King, Brittany Murphy, Clive Owen, Mickey Rourke. I don't think they have enough stars in this movie.

Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire: As Harry grows older the stories get darker.

The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: They blow up Earth in the first 10 minutes of the movie, and then things get funny after that.

Fantastic Four: Avi Arad and Tim Story bring Marvel's first family to life. They went with a younger cast this time around.

Be Cool: Chili Palmer leaves movies and goes into the music business in this follow up to Get Shorty.

The Ring 2: The story picks up six months after the horrifying events that terrorized Rachel Keller and her son Aidan in Seattle. To escape her haunting memories, Rachel takes Aidan and moves to the small coastal community of Astoria, Oregon, to start fresh. However, Rachel’s resolve quickly turns to dread when evidence at a local crime scene—including an unmarked videotape—seems eerily familiar. Rachel realizes that the vengeful Samara is back and more determined than ever to continue her relentless cycle of terror and death..

Ice Harvest: A dim lawyer attempts a Christmas Eve crime, hoping to swindle the local mob out of some money. But his partner, a strip club owner, might have different plans for the cash. directed by Harold Ramis.

Honorable mention: Spy Hunter - It's the Rock for goodness sakes. Come on you know you smell what he's cookin.

Fringe Thursday 12-30-04

Marvel's What If Series is making a comeback. Here are some titles that Marvel has decided to explore.

What If Aunt May Had Died Instead Of Uncle Ben


What If Dr Doom Had Become The Thing


What If General Ross Had Become The Hulk


What If Jessica Jones Had Joined The Avengers


What If Karen Page Had Lived


What If Magneto Had Formed The X-Men With Professor X


Speaking of Marvel Avi Arad is just too busy these days. Here are just a couple of films he's working on.

Iron Fist, The Black Widow, Deathlok, Sub-Mariner, The Hands of Shang-Chi, Iron Man, X-Men 3, Ghost Rider, Luke Cage, Fantastic Four, Man-Thing.

He's really trying to bring the Marvel Universe to life. Now only if I could introduce him to J. Michael Straczynski.

Hip Hop Wednesday 12-29-04

Over 30 and still relevant


DeLaSoul are over 30 years old. Can you believe they are 30 years old and still making hip hop?

Big ups to Panama Jackson for hitting the nail on the head.

I am over 30 and I still listen to hip hop. I always thought I would be more into jazz as I got older cause that's what I thought grown folks did. But turns out that is not the case. Granted I am disappointed by the state of the music but I still find myself looking for the artists that I can relate to. No one thirty years old is going to relate to Chingy and if you do there's something wrong with you. But if you're listening to artists like Mos Def or The Roots there's something you can still appreciate about hip hop. I use those two as prime examples but there are countless others out there who are still keeping the Spirit of 88' alive.

2004 Best and Worst Movies

Top Ten best



Garden State - A really good debut film for Zach Braff. Great script and good soundtrack. He won't get an Oscar nod but he deserves one. One of the best love stories I've seen since Lost in Translation.

Sideways - Real characters and good script. Paul Giamatti deserves an Oscar nod.

Kill Bill Vol. 2 - More talk less action. The result...What do you think it's QT fool.

Primer - You have to watch this movie at least three times before some things sink in.

Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind - From the mind of Charlie Kaufman comes a new age love story. A good date movie.

Closer - I've got two words that describe this movie. Emotional Violence. This movie convinced me that Julia Roberts can act.

Hero - Visually stunning. Kickass action scenes.

The Incredibles - Best animated movie of the year.

Spartan - It's David Mamet. Need I say more?

Dogville - The most violent movie of the year. You will feel something after seeing this movie. Whether it be good or bad really depends on what you think of America.

Top Five Worst:

Torque - Icecube on a bike? Nah.
Twisted - I saw the ending coming a mile away..
Scooby-Doo 2 - Why lord why?
Van Helsing - Big budget, Big disappointment.
Troy - David Benioff left the Gods out of his screenplay. Big mistake.

Honorable Mentions: Spider-Man 2, Hellboy, The Punisher, Man on Fire, Dodgeball, Fahrenheit 9/11, METALLICA: Some Kind of Monster, Anchorman, Collateral, Ray, Shaun of the Dead, Infernal Affairs, Team America: World Police, Ocean's Twelve, The Motorcycle Diaries.

Oh sweet Amber

Ooh then she holds my hand
And I lie to get a smile
And she squeezes tighter
I still lie to get a smile

-Sweet Amber
by Metallica

Amber Frey has a book deal. It should be titled "How I banged a killer."

Is it me or is this just wrong. This woman slept with a married man who turned out to be a killer and now she's cashing in by writing a book? How much you want to bet that this book will be a best seller with the Walmart crew?

Ok she says she didn't know he was married and he probably lied to her. They met in November 20, 2002 but stopped seeing each other in January of 2003.

Frey's attorney says her book is a "story of courage in crisis" that "will inspire others who have been betrayed to fight back for truth and justice."

Heh.

More Red State Madness

Before I bid you guys a Happy X-Mas and a Merry New Year I wanted to leave you guys with a little RED STATE MADNESS.

Jacqueline Duty is suing Russell High School in Lexington, KY for damages resulting in the amount of $50,000. She was told to leave her prom because of her dress.

I think she should have been allowed to wear the dress to her prom. And I also think that if anyone was offended by her expression of her Southern heritage, they should feel free to point out to her that her ancestors lost the Civil War.

Her lawyer said Duty lost many scholarships because she was portrayed as a racist after the incident. Duty's mother added that her daughter graduated near the top of her class in May.

Good for her she graduated at the top of her class but here's the thing. If she was so smart she would understand that the confederate flag symbolizes an society that favored slavery and degredation of black people. That's sounds pretty racist to me.

She should have went to Cary Christian Academy.

William Jelani Cobb wrote a great article one what Cary Christian Academy is doing to history.

Happy Holiday's folks, drink em if ya got em.

Fringe Thursday 12/23/04

Here are a couple of movies that will be getting an American "touch up".


Oldboy is a film that has already been released in South Korea. It will be released in the States in 2005. The premise goes as follows:

An average man is kidnapped and imprisoned in a hotel room for 15 years without explanation. He then is released, equipped with money, a cellphone and expensive clothes. As he strives to explain his imprisonment and get his revenge, he soon finds out that not only his kidnapper has still plans for him, but that those plans will serve as the even worse finale to 15 years of imprisonment.

The premise alone is interesting to me. Based on what I've read on the web this is probably one of the most violent movies to come out of South Korea. Check out the trailer here.


Infernal Affairs was released last year by Miramax and will be remade by Martin Scorsese under the title The Departed. The movie will star Matt Damon and Leonardo DiCaprio. I got a chance to see the original last year and it was just incredible. The premise goes as follows:

The film follows the parallel lives a cop who secretly reports to ruthless Triad crime boss; and an undercover police officer who poses as a Triad member in the crime boss's gang. These two sleeper agents live underground for a decade before a series of mistakes clues in all the wrong people as to what's going on and each mole is ordered to root out the double agent--which in both cases happens to be themselves.

Check out the trailer here.

Hip Hop Wednesday 12/22/04

"What's beef? Beef is when you make your enemies start your Jeep, Beef is when you roll no less than thirty deep, Beef is when I see you, Guaranteed to be an ICU."

-Biggie Smalls

Donricardo Sebastian was shot over some beef in the parking lot of Barry’s nightclub in Rhode Island, on December 3rd 2004. This was the beginning of the end for Hip Hop night at Barry's Club. Police have been sent to Barry's at least 66 times on Thursdays alone, resulting in 30 arrests. Thursday is hip hop night.

The Warwick Board of Public Safety wants to ban Hip Hop and rap music events at Barry's Club. Hip-Hop seems to draw a very violent crowd. We're just not going to put up with it," said Michael F. Ryan, chairman of the Warwick Board of Public Safety.

Donricardo Sebastian has a criminal record going back to 1999 (for shooting someone), and he is a resident of Connecticut. According to the police the shooter is from Massachusetts, the shooter is still at large.

Is it really the music? Then what about what happened in Ohio last week? It wasn't hip hop music they were listening to when Dimebag Darrell got shot.

The ACLU has a problem with this situation . I guess their beef has something to do with free speech. This isn't really about the music, this about outsiders coming into this community and disrupting it. The people involved in the December 3rd incident were not from Rhode Island.

This isn't about the music as much as it is about club security. This should be more about the police keeping tabs on who comes into their jurisdiction and that means not just on Hip Hop night. Getting rid of Hip Hop night is a quick fix. Do these people think that if they ban these type of events it will stop people from coming in and acting the fool?

I understand that the people within this community want peace but censoring a certain type of music is not going to solve the problem.

Red State madness

Normally I would post a picture of Lisa Montgomery (36), but this woman is just too damn ugly and I just don't feel the need to do it.

If you haven't heard by now Lisa Montgomery is accused of strangling Bobbie Jo Stinnett (23) and cutting the fetus out of her womb. Recently she was caught in Kansas.

It's amazing that this all started on a message boards.

Revisionist History

There has been talk about about President Lincoln's sexuality.

C.A. Tripp has written a book. "The Intimate World of Abraham Lincoln," In this new book, Tripp says early biographers of Lincoln, including Carl Sandburg, sensed Lincoln's homosexuality.

In the preface to the original multi-volume edition of his acclaimed 1926 biography, Sandburg wrote: "Month by month in stacks and bundles of fact and legend, I found invisible companionship that surprised me. Perhaps a few of these presences lurk and murmur in this book."

Sandburg also wrote that Lincoln and Joshua Speed had "streaks of lavender, spots soft as May violets." Mr. Tripp said that references to Lincoln possible homosexuality were cut in the 1954 abridged version of the biography. Mr. Tripp maintains that other writers, including Ida Tarbell and Margaret Leech, also found evidence of Lincoln homosexuality but shied away from defining it as such or omitted crucial details.

It is a known fact that Lincoln slept with a man by the name of Joshua Speed for four years. Lincoln and Speed wrote to each other for many years you can read some of their letters here. During frontier times men had to share beds. But come on folks FOUR YEARS? They couldn't find another bed during four years? Sounds fishy to me.

Thomas Jefferson fathered black children with a woman by the name of Sally Hemings but was still a slave owner. Hard concept to accept huh? For many years this was disputed but based on DNA evidence gathered in 1998 the claim was given some credence. The Thomas Jefferson Memorial Foundation issued a report in January 2000 concluding that there is a strong likelihood that Thomas Jefferson was the father of at least one and perhaps all the children of Sally Hemings.

In May 2002 the Monticello Association (descendants of Thomas Jefferson) voted to not admit descendants of Sally Hemings into their organization. The decision came after their careful review of all available information resulting in the conclusion that there was not sufficient evidence to prove Jefferson fathered Hemings' children.

Now keep in mind the decendants of Sally Hemings and President Jefferson's union fought for many years to be accepted into this club and in the end they got what they wanted sort of.

Fringe Thursday 12/16/04

Batman Begins comes out June 17, 2005 but you can see the new trailer here. The trailer looks good, it has a darker tone similar to the first two Tim Burton films.




Marvel Comics has just released "What If Classic Vol. 1 TPB." On sale now at Midtown Comics. For years I've been calling Marvel asking them to put this out in TPB (trade paperback) I'm glad all my phone calls to Marvel paid off.

Speaking of What If's AllHipHop.com has an interesting What If story What If Suge Knight never started Death Row records.

Hip Hop Wednesday 12/15/04

Allhiphop.com does some Q&A with Nelly

Loon leaves Bad Boy. Y'all remember Loon. Back in Feburary he got out on bail for attempted murder. But then the charges were dropped in September.

Grandmaster Flash & the Furious Five get snubbed. By the Rock N Roll hall of fame. This kind of sucks if you ask me. I mean U2 is great in their own right but they are not the innovators that Grandmaster Flash & Co. are, just think about it Grandmaster Flash is credited with developing a series of techniques: "cutting" (moving between tracks exactly on the beat), "back-spinning" (manually turning records to repeat brief snippets of sound), and "phasing" (manipulating turntable speeds) — in short, creating the basic vocabulary which DJs continue to follow even today.

Maybe this is the reason why there should be two different Hall of Fame's. One for Hip Hop the other for Rock.

NAACP Where do we go from here?

In order to provide some perspective on Kweisi Mfume recent resignation from the NAACP I decided to provide some background history.

Combining the white philanthropic support that characterized Booker T. Washington's accommodationist organizations with the call for racial justice delivered by W. E. B. Du Bois's militant Niagara Movement, the NAACP forged a middle road of interracial cooperation.

The Niagara Movement was the pre-cursor to the NAACP

After the Niagara Movement disbanded in 1910.

Ida Wells-Barnett, W.E.B. DuBois, Henry Moscowitz, Mary White Ovington, Oswald Garrison Villiard, William English Walling led the "Call" to renew the struggle for civil and political liberty

The first president of the NAACP was a white man by the name of Moorfield Storey, a white constitutional lawyer and former president of the American Bar Association. The writer and diplomat James Weldon Johnson became the association's first black secretary in 1920. Louis T. Wright, a surgeon, was named the first black chairman of its board of directors in 1934.

And now we jump to 2004 and Kweisi Mfume stepping down as President of the NAACP. So where does the organization go from here?

Personally I feel the NAACP needs an over haul and a name change. The NAACP needs to make a lot of decisions as far as its direction is concerned. The NAACP must prove it's relevance to today's youth. There must be a bridge built between lower-income minorities and the middle-class. To quote Lester Kenyatta Spence "The NAACP is using mid 20th Century methods to deal with 21st Century problems."

Re: Preaching God, With Profanity

My colleague Nominal Me posted an article about Spirituality in Hip-Hop.

He should have consulted me on this topic before he singled out Kanye West. I would have informed him that spirituality has always been apart of hip hop going back as far artists like DMX, PM Dawn, Me Phi Me, KRS-One, Nas, Tupac, Bone Thugs-N-Harmony (remember the Crossroads).

Hip hop has always had a spiritual element to it check out these lyrics. And judge for yourself.



DMX - The Prayer IV

"Father God I am just learning how to pray, so bear with me First I thank you for the life of everyone that's here with me. Then I thank you for the love you give me, why? I don't know; I don't deserve it, and it hurts inside Many a nights I cried, and called your name out loud But didn't call you when I was doin good, I was too proud. And STILL you gave me love, I wasn't used to that, most of the people that gave me love, they ended up takin it back. That's somethin new to me, so I'm askin you for time to adjust. Let me make it there, I will be one you can trust What I stand for, I put my life on, I DO!
I guess what I'm askin is - show me how to stand for you.




Nas - Heaven

If Heaven was a mile away, And you could ride by the gates. Would you try to run inside when it opens would you try to die today? Would you pray louder finally believing His power? Even if you couldn't see, but you could feel would you still doubt him? How would you start acting?



Tupac - Only God can judge me

Oh my lord. Tell me what I'm livin' for
Everybodies droppin' Got me knockin' on heaven's door
And all my memories Of seeing brothas bleed
And everybody grieves. But still nobody sees. Recollect your thoughts. Don't get caught up in tha mix. Cause the media is full of dirty tricks. Only God can Judge me....

Those are just several examples.

Dirty Debi update.

The Tampa temptress "Dirty" Debi Lafave is using the insanity defense and pleading not guilty to the charge that she had sex with a 14 year old boy.

Star Banner's Rick Cundiff breaks it down perfectly in this article.

This was my favorite part:

"The boy, Kayan told investigators, “could be very arrogant and rude to me and to other students. He could be very annoying, but he is very intelligent.”

Just goes to show ya that women fall for that type no matter what age they are.

"Lafave and the boy got caught when the cousin's mother became suspicious about seeing the boy in Ocala with an unknown woman. She called the boy's mother, who complained to Temple Terrace police."

See this is why I don't involve family in my business cause family always tells and it always gets back to your mom.

21 Baltimore cops file lawsuit

21 current and former African-American Baltimore police officers have filed a federal class-action suit alleging discrimination in Baltimore, Maryland. The 21 officers allege the department condoned a hostile workplace, blocking black officers from promotion, providing uneven discipline and retaliating against officers who speak out against discrimination.

It's interesting that African-Americans have to still deal with this type of thing til this day.

If you want to ask this question to the acting police commissioner Leonard Hamm please feel free to call his office the number is:
410-396-2020.

While you are at it please feel free to ask him why they fired the black commissioner Kevin Clark?

Hip-Hop Wednesday 12/8/04

Queensbridge's own Street Disciple Nas has released a double album.


Some say it is not his best work but it is good. I've always felt that Nas as an artist never really reached his full potential. Instead he went mainstream and put out work that reinforced thug life all in the name of keeping it real. What people don't understand is that Escobar was a character and not who Nas really is. He's always had a positive element to his music hopefully this double album will deliever more of a message that takes us back to his debut Illmatic.




Also in other news Kanye West was nominated for 10 grammys. It seems as though Hip Hop music has reached a new height. Although while the genre has gotten a tad bit bloated like rock in the late eighties there are always bright spots. Kanye West is one of those rare MCs (note the use of the term MC and not rapper yes there is a difference) that takes the genre to a new level. Last year Outkast won album of the year with the Speakerboxxx/The Love Below. I wonder if Kanye West can pull it off. He's only up against: Ray Charles, Alicia Keys, Usher and Greenday. Stiff competition indeed.

Interracial couple harassment

Taye Diggs and his Tony award winning wife Idina Menzel have been getting harassed lately.

Diggs, 34, swapped vows with Menzel, 33, in January 2003. The native New Yorkers first met in 1996 when they costarred together in the Broadway smash Rent.

Authorities do not yet have a suspect, but it's believed that more than one person was responsible for the notes. Investigators are trying to trace the letters, which were postmarked from three different locations: New York City, Philadelphia and a town in Ohio.

This is the line that makes me think it's a black woman at the bottom of this:

Diggs, meanwhile, is in Canada shooting a movie.

Or maybe it's the people that were behind this.

Why does do interracial couples offend people? Afterall aren't we in the year 2004? It's not like getting married to person of another race is against the law.

The New Avengers

Marvel comics has decided to revamp the Avengers. Here's the new lineup: Captain America, Wolverine, Spiderman, Spiderwoman, Luke Cage, Sentry, Iron Man. And a mystery character to be announced.

New Avengers #1 is available at newsstands right now.

Congratulations TJ.

Sometimes in this life dreams come true. And if you're lucky you get to see it happen. Yesterday TJ Allard won job on "Good Day Live" to be a New York correspondent for the show.

Nominal Me has posted a more in depth interview with him on his blog.

Congrats TJ. You took this victory in stride with a humilty and dignity. We are all proud of you.