Lost One

It's been a rough patch for me this year when it comes to losing the ones I love. Age or sickness have both taken away a number of people I have known for most of my life here on earth. Now I'm hoping that there is not another I have to add to that list. One of my best friends has started to participate in some shady dealings due to personal hard times and this new economic crisis. The last time I heard from him he told me that he wasn't sure how his day would end and if something happened to him that I needed to tell his family that he was just trying to survive. I have yet to hear from him. I'm not ready for another one of those phone calls.

Early to Mid 90s.....son....

Black moon, Diamond D, Primo beats, Pete Rock and CL, army jackets, hoodies, bald heads, Timberlands, Phillies, Old English, Dre & The Chronic, St. Ides, Grand Puba, Tommy Hilfiger, Helly Hansen & Nautica jackets, Rap City & Yo MTV raps, A Tribe Called Quest, Black Sheep, Ice Cube, Snoop, Onyx, Naugty by Nature, Wu-muhfukin'-Tang, Nas, Big, Pac, Hov, the "Purple Tape", back when Common was Common Sense, Showbiz & AG, Big L, O.C., fitted caps, beedies, 40s, Jodeci, Mary J, Junior Mafia, Puffy, Suge, Alkaholiks, Redman, Keith Murray, Das EFX, Foxy & Kim, AZ, Funk Flex, Clue, real mixtapes, r&b and hiphop blends, Lexus coupe, Land Cruisers, Acura Legends, the Jesus Piece, Coogi, FUBU, Jacob the Jeweler, Menace II Society, Juice, gangster movies, Spike Lee, Outkast, Jeru, Artifacts, Echo shirts, the Roots, De La, Gravediggas, Group Home, Lady of Rage, Boss, Digable Planets, UNLV & the Michigan Fab 5, da Chicago Bulls, Martin, Living Single, New York Undercover, In Living Colour, Geto Boys, the Beatnuts, KRS One, KMD, House of Pain, Mobb Deep, Company Flow, Blahzay Blahzay, Souls of Mischief, Lords of the Underground, Pharcyde, Busta,Fugees, Gangstarr, Main Source, Scarface, Brand Nubian, Goodie Mob, Eightball & MJG, X-Clan, Leaders of the New School, Ed O.G. and the Bulldogs, Organized Konfusion, Akinyele, Bahamadia........wow, I could really go on forever.

Yowza Yowza...

There is no reason behind this but I feel the urge to post my utter infatuation with Rosario Dawson. Me likey.

Rock, Rock Ya'll.....

I went to see The Roots again recently. I can't think of any other groups I have seen in recent years that can keep me entertained no matter how many times I see one of their shows. I am constantly amazed at how they manage to have so many different versions of their songs and performances. I have never once been bored at one of their concerts. My son is at the age now where I want to take him to see them and experience a group of brothers actually playing instruments and being creative within the realm of hiphop. While they were missing their normal bass player Hub, they had a tuba player filling in.....and he rocked it. A freakin' tuba solo at a hiphop concert and even the thugs were rocking to it. I was impressed. My favorite part of the show is always when they perform 'You Got Me'. I have not heard them perform that song the same way twice and each time it is that much better. Their guitar player did a Jimi Hendrix style solo, broke into a rendention of 'My Favorite Things', and then proceeded to do a George Benson impression....and he rocked it. Black Thought of course was the vigilant assassin on the mic and ?uest Love (aka musical genius) did his thing on the drums. They played songs from every album they have produced and showcased their knowledge of currrent and classic hiphop with a freestyle jam session over other artists beats....and they rocked it. A Roots concert is one of the few events where I have seen all ages, gender, and races come together and just enjoy themselves without the unspoken tension or segregation floating through the crowd.

Badu performed too and I was caught off guard and impressed with the amount of "rear end" she possesses. Once I got past my natural male curiosity I was able to soak in her show and guess what......she rocked it. I was especially pleased to be able to witness her perform 'The Healer' and 'Green Eyes' live despite the fact she was doing some performance with exercise balls and making them kiss during the song. Don't ask. You really had to be there.

Good stuff. Real music is still alive. Now if we can just get Tribe and BlackStarr back together and Maxwell and D'Angelo back in a studio. A friend of mine did tell me that Maxwell has some serious heat recorded already though and it is unbelievable.

Who Shot Ya?!

So I'm half sleep on the sofa last night letting the effects of happy hour end my day while I watch the Wizards get what they deserve and the Celtics blow another one when my boy shows up at the door. During one of the breaks there is a brief news story concerning athletes and violence which led to a conversation that centered around popular rappers and their downfalls. B starts in on his thing about the government "assasinating" Biggie and Pac. Assassinate. Now I am a conspiracy theorists and rebel at heart so I usually ride with B when he goes on one of his tirades but I have always had a problem with this one. There are so many rappers out there that the government would keep tabs on and want to silence but not Big and Pac. Pac maybe but still a stretch in my honest opinion. If the government was really threatened enough by an artist that they would take them out I think they would have focused on different people. I can see the government looking at Chuck D and PE back in the day, KRS, X-Clan and so on. These days I could see them looking at Dead Prez and the handful of underground acts that speak out against our government. Killing them? Nah. 1) Conscious hiphop is no longer considered lucrative or popular so the audience is minimal compared to the commercial artist today. 2) Big and Pac didn't exactly preach rebellion to the people. Both seemed preoccupied with threatening their enemies and predicting their unavoidable downfalls at the hands of said enemies. While I have to admit that something shady is behind their deaths, our taxes didn't pay for it. We did that shit. We followed and pumped money into that stupid ass beef and then a bunch of jealous, ego driven, misguided "gangstas" that surrounded these dudes did that shit. If the government actually wanted them not to exist, all they had to do was sit back and watch. Just like they do with us every day. If we ever get organized and stop destroying ourselves you will see the government show interest beyond belief.

I only typed this to piss B off. I'm off to see what the big deal is about this Iron Man movie.

Why Am I Here?

I have been sitting here looking at this text box wondering that very thing. I have been very fortunate to fall back into contact with a friend of mine recently through an alumni site for our school. We started talking back and forth and then she told me about her blog. I never really read blogs before. To be honest, as progressive and all knowing as I claim to be I never really understood or cared what a blog was. Then I saw hers and the concept clicked. It's an extension of yourself. Random thoughts, beliefs, and ideas put out there for the world to see. I can't tell you how many times people have told me I have way too much to say and and enough writing talent to have my own blog. I finally have decided to listen and put myself out there for others to see, if they even care to do so. I guess it would help seeing that almost everyone I know lately has been saying I am too much of a mystery to them. Maybe some insight on my day to day and a peek into my confused brain will give them more insight into why I do what I do (or don't). I tell you now, please ignore typos and improper use of punctuation. It's what I do. Bringing it to my attention will get you amounts of sarcasm you are not prepared for.

Okay I'm rambling again. Hopefully this will be some good therapy for me and help me get some things off my brain that have been building up. I have officially taken my first step into expressing my inner most thoughts to the world.....I need a beer.