We’re Living in the 31st Century, futuristic fly sh*t!
The dope house is the green house, and everybody rides hybrids!
New Public, Traaaaaansit.
…
They can’t stop us, the profits…profit US!
No generation should have so much power
The clock is ticking, we just count the hours
Stop Tripping, stop tripping off the power.
–”Power” Remix by Van Jones (ok not really, but it would be sorta fly to see Jay-Z rapping about the green economy)
At first I wasn’t going to write a review for Bun B’s new 5 mic album, Trill OG. After all, to do a really thorough review you have to spend at least a couple of hours digesting an album, and as much as I love rap music, I’d much rather spend my time kicking soccer balls with my son. But, a couple of days ago I got into a text message battle with my friend Ryan Ford, former Executive Editor of The Source and current Creative Director for Cashmere Agency, about the relevance of UGK and Bun B. And now, I’ve decided that I am going to have to listen to the album this weekend so that I can review it. (I think I can fit it in during my morning workout session on Saturday.)
Four years ago, when I was writing (and not getting paid) for The Source, I strongly encouraged Ryan and other Source staff members to include UGK in an issue about future 5 Mic contenders. After all, I grew up in Milwaukee, and the basslines of UGK’s and Bun B’s music has rattled through the trunks of young men’s cars in my city for the last two decades. I argued that Bun B’s 2005 album, Trill, highlighted that the southern duo was continuing to grow and was making better music than when they had come out. Alas, UGK didn’t make the issue.
In our text message tiff, I reminded Ryan that I sorta called The Source giving Bun B 5 Mics and that had I once again predicted the future of rap music. (Like the time in 2002 when I stated that Cee-Lo was an amazing musician that would have a huge impact on the music landscape, not just rap. Or the time that I said that Krondon from Strong Arm Steady was on his way to becoming a gangster rapper, even though he started his career as a conscious MC.)
Although the “Bible of Hip-hop” (is the Source still the bible?) waited until Pimp C died to give the Houston based rap group their props, UGK and most specifically Bun B, has really been pumping out quality music for years. And despite their many contradictions, Bun B has been deserving of some special recognition from hip-hop journalists for some time now.
So this weekend I am going to listen to Bun B’s album to see if the folks at The Source got it right.
Is it just me, or have you noticed that kids are getting, um, bigger…faster than when you were a kid? And I am not just talking about height. Some of these 10 year-olds have so much “meat on their bones” that even Oprah is soapboxing about childhood obesity. (And I am not trying to imply that Oprah is big boned…I am just saying, it’s not like the media icon was winning “Presidential Fitness” championships in high school.)
Apparently, childhood obesity doesn’t only impact your ability to run around the playground. According to a new study by the Journal of Pediatrics, it can also make you start puberty earlier, especially if you are a young African American girl. Get this, almost 43% of African American girls had started puberty by the age 8! That’s 25% higher than white girls!
Yesterday, we posted an audio clip from a recent interview with Cornel West (shouts out to Allhiphop’s Chuck Creekmur for the heads up). The respected public intellectual and scholar was a guest on NPR’s “Talk of the Town” and let’s just say that the usually unflappable thinker got a little flustered. Apparently, he and President Obama had an uncomfortable moment sometime back, and West felt that the President was talking to him like he was a “cub scout.”
Of course, Cornel West is a top notch polemicist (aka debater) and I believe that much of this was political theater. West understands that NPR is a powerful outlet, and it’s clear that he used the moment to jump on his soapbox. Plus, West has been a pretty strong critic of Obama since the campaign, and I don’t believe that the Princeton Professor is simply hating on Obama because he can’t stand seeing another black man shining. The philosopher typically tries to push Obama’s moral compass, and remind him that as a person of color, he is tied to a much longer history of social justice. West acknowledges that the President has to govern, but at the end of the day he has more power to build a “Beloved Community” than any other president in US history. (Obama has acknowledged this in the past, the clearest example of this is his “Joshua Generation” speech during his campaign.)
And I am not like a lot of people who think that we shouldn’t be pushing or criticizing Obama. After all, he himself has said that it is our responsibility to “hold” him to be a stronger leader. So push on Mr. West!!
Pharoahe Monch Freestyle on Toca Tuesdays from Toca Tuesdays on Vimeo.
Pharoahe Monch is one of my top five lyricists of all time. I don’t care what nobody says, this guy is an amazing lyricist. He’s been real inconsistent throughout his career, but jiminy crickets, he is nice. Pharoahe Monch’s next LP, W.A.R. (We Are Renegades) will be out this fall.
spotted at okayplayer.com
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Toure, interviewed J. Cole about everything from college to his new video to his writing process. I don’t think Toure used the word ni&&a this time, but you should still watch the video because J. Cole is the sh#t and is crushing most MCs out these days! (“pause granddad!”)
spotted via nahright
Unless you’ve been living under a rock, you know know that the oil spill in the gulf has been plugged by the geniuses over at BP. (Thanks for working so hard on that one!) But there has been growing concerns that the seepage around the cap might be a sign of a bigger problem.
Let’s hope that it holds. Stay tuned for more info!!
Congresswoman Barbara Lee, D-Oakland, is asking the Department Of Justice to review the trial of former BART police office Johannes Mehserle.
On Tuesday, Lee asked Attorney General Eric Holder to make sure all civil rights statutes were properly enforced.
Last Thursday, a jury convicted Mehserle of involuntary manslaughter in Oscar Grant’s killing.
The Justice Department replied by saying it and the FBI have an open investigation into the fatal shooting, and will conduct an independent review after Mehserle’s sentencing.
Oakland Mayor Ron Dellums said he also would ask the Justice Department to get involved at the request of Grant’s family.
Professor West recently showed up at NPR (with his afro) and got a lot a little flustered when talking about...
Wale-The Black And Gold by 99problemsdotorg
Wale snapped over this Sam Sparro sampled beat....
Los – Next Black President by 99problemsdotorg...
