IN MUSIC AND ENTERTAINMENT

I've never seen so many facials tattoos on a brotha.

I don't know where to start, there were a lot of happenings in the world of music and entertainment, and I don't go into too much detail about nothingness. First, as I wrote before Lil Wayne was arrested in Arizona after his tour bus was stopped by Border Patrol, they found various so-called "harmful" drugs and about $20,000 in cash on the bus. It was learned shortly thereafter that Wayne's DJ, DJ Taz Poe essentially called him out for being a junkie, and advised him to go to detox. Lil Wayne apparently went bananas calling him a bitch and speaking of how he will never accompany him again. THEN, it is said that Wayne, after 5 minutes, apologized to his DJ and thanked him for gifts and even performed "Go DJ"....I'm as confused as you are; don't do drugs. Speaking of junkies, on allhiphop.com, there is a video of a former G-Unit member calling out Young Buck for being a junkie, saying that he pretty much sniffed coke with him and what not. Check it out: http://allhiphop.com/stories/rumors/archive/2008/01/30/19207295.aspx The dude's name is D-Tay. Something had to prompt him to say these things, maybe its the fact that Young Buck has signed with Cash Money a few days ago.

Missy has always been years ahead of the game.

Staying on music, Missy Elliot is always flippin the game, always original - a true pioneer. Her next move, making a 3-D music video. Missy has been and will always be recognized as one of the most creative, influential, and original artists around - I'll write more when I know more. First Beyonce, now Rihanna!? Some pictures of Rihanna to be featured in FHM magazine have been photo shopped to make it look like she was posing in the nudie for the male magazine. Let's not forget what a fan did to Beyonce's photos.

FAKE!!! AUTHENTIC!!!

In other news, Tyra Banks is working on making another reality show to air on the CW network to be launched in the spring or summer. The show, which doesn't have a name yet as far as I'm concerned, is going to be a competition for who wants to be the Assistant Editor of a fashion magazine publication. Ken Mok, who is 1/2 of the team that brought "America's Next Top Model" to life, said that it for aspiring assistants who want to become assistant editors but have to prove that they have a fashionista sense of style in their swag. According to the Hollywood Reporter, contestants will have to complete a pair of challenges every episode - an individual challenge and a team challenge in which they have to submit a page for a mock edition of the magazine. Sort of like "The Devil Wears Prada" which was a good movie, I can sort of see myself digging this show, BUT, it is really no surprise that Miss Banks, with all due respect, a pioneer is modeling sure, but Journalism is simply not her thing - I don't think she has an ounce of subjectivity in her body, as she does nothing but center around herself. Does she have a clothing line by the way? If she does, maybe it'll give the show more substance - well, not maybe but it definitely will. There is a big difference between the people who come up with the ideas for the clothes and the people who just wear them and look pretty. This should be interesting. Additionally, "Pretty Boy" Floyd aka "Money" Mayweather is expanding his empire and his influence beyond the ring, as he always has, by combining a list of stars to participate in his upcoming "Mayweather Experience" festival next weekend in Grand Rapids, MI. On hand, Floyd will have Jadakiss, Styles, Swizz Beatz, and Soulja Boy, Kid Capri, and Shuana for his "King of the Ring" freestyle battle to be judged by the celebrities (let's just hope Soulja Boy isn't a judge) on the first day. The winner will win $10,000 and a possible record deal. On the second day, "Money May" will be having a basketball game that will feature Jadakiss, Bow Wow (who apparently got in a fight with security guards at his concert with Chris Brown - funny for a dude that ran from Toure of BET), Lloyd, Keyshia Cole, Chili, and Christina Milian. On the final day of the festivities, Mayweather will have Cedric the Entertainer on hand for a comedy show. Get your tickets at ticketmaster.com. And, expect a rematch with Oscar De La Hoya in September. Finally and most importantly, IF YOUR STATE IS PARTICIPATING IN THE SUPER TUESDAY PRESIDENTIAL PRIMARIES ON FEBRUARY 5TH, PLEASE DO NOT FORGET TO VOTE!!! Soon come.

John Edwards Waves the White Flag

I've always liked John Edwards, he's a very sensible guy, down to earth, genuine, and it seems like he doesn't lie TOO much, for politicians standards anyway. His wife was diagnosed with breast cancer in March 2007 and he still trucked on - it was a dream of both of theirs. He is a good guy. But having placed second in the Iowa Caucuses was the high point for his 2008 Presidential bid, and hence, Senator Edwards has now quit the 2008 race for Democratic Nominee. Leaving ALL of the attention (before it was just most) on Sen. Clinton and Sen. Obama. I always said that in order for us to see Sen. Obama as President, he and John Edwards would have to join together on a ticket because Obama can't do it alone, just yet. Maybe there is chance for that now that he dropped out of the Presidential race, it would be smart for Sen. Obama to hop on that and have a little chat with Edwards about "an agent of change," we should expect something along those lines, Sen. Obama is a remarkably smart man with great charisma and speaking abilities. According to various news outlets, his decision to drop out of the race came shortly after a very disappointing and disheartening third place finish in his own state's primary of South Carolina. Sen. Obama won South Carolina convincingly with 55% of the votes - about 44% coming from Blacks, leaving only 11% from other voters. Sen. Edwards' presidential bid was committed to ending poverty and increasing housing development - he immediately went to work with Habitat for Humanity in New Orleans. Edwards is truly a great man, who did all he could to give a voice to the working and middle classes - people who really do feel irrelevant in this country, as if they have no voice because of the tradition of this country, especially when it comes to voting. That simple fact makes Edwards and Obama a hot ticket - because they are compatible in that aspect. Yesterday, Sen. Clinton won 50% of votes for Democrats in Florida, a state full of old retirees - a dominating win that isn't getting too much attention because no delegates were awarded, but both the South Carolina and Florida primaries prove how imperative winning the southern states, which are traditionally "red" or republican states, really is. Not that anything is wrong with Sen. Clinton, but recent reports have been accurate, her bitterness in the attack of her fellow democrats have overshadowed her actual stance on some issues. Additionally, Bill stepped into the spotlight for the previous two weeks and it seemed like he was doing her battles for her. Both Democrats have the opportunity and the potential to not only make history but to CHANGE history, which is really what we need right now, the last thing we need is another Republican President, most of the candidates are referring to Ronald Reagan as a "hero." No explanation needed for the young and old in minority communities or those who are "working class" to know who he really was or what he really did to our communities. By the way, former NYC mayor Rudy Guliani dropped out of the race, too - no surprise there.

Lil Wayne Arrested & Other Quick Hits

In case you haven't heard or read, the self-proclaimed "best rapper alive", Lil Wayne was arrested by Arizona police when his tour bus was pulled over by the hawks who are the US Border Patrol. Wayne was charged with three felonies as the boys found over 3 ounces of marijuana, an ounce of cocaine, an ounce of ecstasy, and about $22,000 in cash. The three felonies were 1) possession of narcotics for sale, 2) possession of dangerous drugs [side note, aren't ALL drugs dangerous>], and 3) possession of drug paraphernalia. He was released on about $10,000 bail. The next day, Lil Wayne was three hours late to his concert in Richmond, VA because he had to appear in court. It was a hostile crowd at first, apparently, Wayne was very lackluster at the beginning as fans even started to leave. He said that because of what he went through caused him to see his life in a different light proceeding his performances of "D-Boy" and "Duffle Bag Boy" See a clip of his performance in Richmond, VA. at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UMfpRz-p-pA Quick Hits

• First, R.I.P. to Heath Ledger, a young actor who was on his way to superstar status sooner than later.
• Akon's court date relating to his incident of throwing a fan off stage is pushed back to March.
• Mariah Carey's new album is called "That Chick" and it is coming out on April 1st. Apparently, Carey is trying new things on her latest, including tracks with Damien Marley in which she tries to go reggae?! In other words, don't be fooled (no pun intended) if it's a dud.
• I never noticed how good The-Dream's album is. It's a pretty good one, check out Love/Hate if you get the chance.

Back

My bad for not blogging in a few days, without making too many excuses, I've been quite lazy. But even when I'm lazy, my mind is still working. I was thinking about what to write and how to write it, I have a lot to say (as usual), but just to take it to more practical subjects, I was listening to Lupe Fiasco's "The Cool" (which is a very good album). My favorite track on the album is called "Hip Hop Saved My Life" and it features an angelic like voice on the hook/chorus. Being the ambitious brotha that I am, I searched for this voice, it's name is Nikki Jean - so I figured that I would look her up on Myspace to hear more of her - put a face on the voice. It's not surprise that I love women, it is also no surprised of what type of women I find myself attracted to more so than others, petite, caramel skinned, soft spoken, bubbly, soulful sistas. Not to my surprise, Ms (or Mrs) I did peep a ring on the ring finger of her left hand, seems to fit that description. Thus, Nikki has influenced me to create a weekly segment, for our enjoyment. I will attempt to look for "new" eye candy, at least once a week. I put the word new is quotations because although Nikki is new to me, I'm sure she's not to thousands of others. Here's a pic of her, and some other eye candy that all fit in my bias categorization of a Dapper Boy's eye candy, caramel skinned, soft spoken, artistic, and soulful.

The Angelic voice of Nikki Jean, hit up her myspace and have a listen for yourself, myspace.com/thenikkijeanprojectMy interest in Corrine Bailey Rae is no secret, hit up her myspace, too, myspace.com/corinnebaileyrae

My current girlfriend has a similar appearance, I'm just working on the soulful/artistic parts :-p - LOL.

An Untitled Love Story pt.1

I didn’t get much sleep this week. It was a choice. Sleep washes away all the bad memories of yesterday, as if they happened 20 years ago. I don’t want to wash away these memories, I want to stay dirty. Through my years of observing other people, I have discovered that what you initially say is not only the most telling – it’s the most honest.

I want to remember every last word that I muttered to myself so that I can tell her how I really feel - when the time is right. The time hasn’t been right all week… I haven’t slept all week – I gotta keep my mind fresh so I can give her a piece. Claire. Claire is always my toughest opponent, most of the time - usually by choice, I lose to Claire. Claire goes by another name …wife; I’ve been with her since our college days.

For most of those 10 years, I’ve given her everything that I could. Sacrifice was the name of the game and I not only played, I mastered. At times, I know she took advantage of me because she knows that I would bend over backwards to try to find solutions to everything – to satisfy her. Through years of observation, I have discovered that satisfaction is an impossible illusion. Sometimes, I lived life for her; those were the time that our relationship struggled. The most important asset of a successful relationship is having a life of your own, too.

It struggled – we struggled. We argued all the time. I hate arguing and would do almost anything to avoid it, so when I find myself in one, specifically with Claire, I simply sit back and let her scream. By not saying a word, I expose her lack of logic and intelligence. She thinks I’m quiet because she’s right – she’s wrong.

A line has to be drawn somewhere and it has to be visible – that was my problem. The line was invisible to her and blurry to me. Blurry to me because I changed so much for her, my approach, my standards, my expectations - my life; invisible to her because it was never enforced the way it should’ve been – that’s on me, but a line has to be drawn. Maybe I shouldn’t flip out like I planned; maybe it’s my fault for having these expectations. “When you have expectations, you will be disappointed,” that’s what they say right? But with no expectations, there are no standards and with no standards – you settle. I’d bury myself alive before settling.

On the other hand, maybe she needs to see me like this to really see that I’m not gonna take her shit anymore. She needs to see that I’m serious. I’m vexed – it’ll come to me as soon as she gets home. Time seems to be crawling. Its 2:30 AM and I can’t take it anymore. I need to take initiative – fuck philosophy, trust instinct, only instinct. When I call, I need to be assured that there’s barely a sign of agitation in my voice. I’ve never been one to show too much emotion- it hampers logic. “Yea, what’s up?” I asked. She replied, “Nothin’, still at the club with the girls, thinkin about leaving soon.” It was Sunday. I don’t know too many clubs open at 2:30 AM on Sundays I didn’t bother asking where it was, if she really wanted me to know – she’d let me know. I’ll play her game, “Sounds good. You havin’ fun?” “Yea, we always have fun. I’ll be headin’ home soon,” she said. “Cool, I’m just making sure you’re ok, I’ll see you later.” “All right, bye.”

I wondered if she expected me to go to sleep – to not stay up. She probably did – it was just in my nature to not worry too much – but that doesn’t mean I’m heartless.

The bright clips from ESPNews lit up my midnight black living room. I’m falling back on the NBA season; I gotta see what’s goin’ on – who is the next hot prospect. The kid from Kansas seems to be on the rise – I’d bet he’d make a good feature – probably a photo for the cover – I’ll mention it tomorrow. Subscriptions are skyrocketing again and we’re now competing with two other publications for the top spot in the nation. My professional life couldn’t be much better now, if only my personal life was in sync with that I’d be the most successful man on Earth – because I’d be happy. But happiness is damned near impossible to achieve. I have to play with the cards that I’m dealt.

It goes like this: in the professional world, eliminating emotions as the middle man works great. In the personal world, too little emotion will lead to your personal demise whereas showing too much emotion shares the same fate. Life is a chess game played with guns, knives, and hearts.

I zone out. It’s now 3:23. No missed phone calls. The feeling of zoning out is euphoric – it calls me to escape the madness. That madness is called ambition, the ambition for perfection – call it impossible- mental slavery if you will, but when I achieve – a link of the chain breaks, I’m now one step closer to becoming free.

Ambition leads me to doing…unorthodox practices. In the office, I set an example of how employees should not only work but how they should look. I recommend that employees workout five to seven days a week, sometimes twice a day. I stick to the regimen faithfully. It’s mostly, cardio and conditioning, I’ve never been a fan of the excess bulkiness, I lived through the “performance enhancing” era - never found it appealing. I eat red meat three times a week, starch with every meal, and protein everyday. But before you call me names, understand that I’m not a health freak – I moderate. I eat an ice cream sandwich on Saturdays and occasionally fry my chicken and order out. My favorite spot to order serves international cuisine- Banzai’s. I always order a Boston roll and a Shrimp Tempura roll to compliment it. Hold the wasabi, ginger, and soy sauce – seaweed wrapped. Steamed Chicken with broccoli is a close second.

A typical day starts when I wake up, I shower. A typical day ends before I go to sleep, I shower. I wash my body with a lemon zest exfoliating scrub gel. I exfoliate my face twice a day, too. When I’m done exfoliating, I apply a scentless all purpose moisturizer – one for the face, the other for the body. I get a hair cut every Tuesday – 1 ½ inch blade – if not than at least a shape up. A tie everyday to work, employees must do the same, if not a tie than a sweater, shoes or all black boots when it snows is a must. The women need to be dressed in business attire, too. Hair, never sloppy and as little make up as possible. If you’re ugly…at least dress nice.

Its 3:41. I begin a set of 20 diamond push-ups -inclined of course. I let out grunts for breaths as every rep is completed its past 3 am and I haven’t been getting sleep – I’m aggressive. It’s harder to go at a slow pace when you work out so I usually prefer it, but this is special. I’m as aggressive as a punch drunk raging bull…I see red. I pick up my pace, lifting myself off of the floor with every rep until I’m done. Immediately following the set of push ups, I lie on the carpet and squeeze my toes under my couch and proceed to my crunches: five to the left side, five to the center, and five to the right, 10 to the left, center, and right, 15 to the left, center, and right. I’m straining, sweating, panting - relieved.

Time to cool off, I’m still burning up from the disrespect that Claire has shown me. I told my good friend Anthony about my situation – just about the adjustments that need to be made if she and I were to remain together. I’m tired of being a pushover because that’s not how I am at all – I just do whatever I possible can, but when someone takes advantage, consequences follow. Maybe that’s my problem – do I try to hard to satisfy her? He agreed with where I stand, I bust my ass for her, especially emotionally in my relationship it seems like it’s nothing to her – as if we’ve been dating for six months – that’s not the case – this is 10 years. 10 god damned years. I refuse to play fool for too much longer and therefore, emotionally, I withdraw instead of speaking. Could it be that she doesn’t notice what she does? That’s not excuse, and its cliché. She’s going on 31 – I’m not dumb, nor am I blind although I feel like my sight has been regained. Everyone close to me says it; everything from “I’m too good for her; I put in too much effort.” I’m starting to think that they’re right.

Another set of yearns my presence, I obey the call. Keeping my composure has always been a habit of mine but as pushed and sat up, composure was long gone. 20 became 40 and those 90 sit-ups became 180. I lay out, breathing hard, sweat covered my naked torso. I ran to the bathroom and began vomit. My late night workout was complete.

Tomorrow is Monday and I don’t have the day off, I rarely do – she has about a week off. I’m still waiting up- no missed calls. It’s 4:15 AM and a rum and coke on the rocks now sings my name. The occasional drink or two is part of my regimen and this time is no different. In fact, the drink and I became one. The ice that clanked on my wine glass represented my ice-cold attitude – blistering, numb, and piercing. The rum is my demeanor, smooth, relaxing – euphoria. A place I need to visit as I eye my “lazyboy”. I take a sip, a deep breath, and recline. Before I zone out again, I set my alarm for 5:00 AM, if she’s not home by then – I’ll call to make sure she’s all right.

The slightest thought of her infiltrates my zone. All I could think about is how this situation is going to play out. I hope for the best but I know how stubborn she is – she’s in for a surprise. Still zoning, I’m numb to the outside horrors of the world- until my phone vibrates. I quickly awoke, it was just my alarm. It’s 5:00 AM – the time I usually wake up anyway. I call- utterly surprised by the content of our conversation. “You’re alive?” I asked in a very monotone pitch, she sarcastically responded “Yes baby.” “Are you coming home today?” I asked. She raised her voice, “Yes! Where else would I be going!?”

“Composure,” I whispered to myself. I reply calmly - even when I’m being the biggest asshole in the world, “I don’t know what you might have planned. Its 5 AM, I just want to make sure that you’re safe.”

“We’re getting breakfast, I’ll be getting home soon, bye.”

A blank stare into black – becomes my zone. She hung up on me! That little bitch. I am fuming – gripping my phone like a snake does it’s pray when I closed it. I thought I was doing the right thing by never responding – scooping to a different level, but for her to disrespect me like that…didn’t sit too well with me – she must think that she can run all over me – she’s in for a surprise.

I continue to recline and have 2 more rum and cokes. It was then, at an emotional rock bottom that I realized – I need a break…from everything and called in sick to work. I was no longer planning a sit down, peaceful convo. with her, I was brainstorming the demise to a 10-year foundation.

Part of me, a big part, wanted to pack her bags for her…and watch as they burn where they will be collecting the trash in a few minutes. But we’ll see how it is when she gets here. Once a nice guy, always a nice guy, unfortunately. I finished my last rum and coke, cleaned up a little bit and went to sleep as the room began to spin. I’m awaken shortly thereafter by the twisting of a key in my door. Everything became still, even the room, my adrenaline rushed and butterflies crawled an obstacle course in my stomach.

It s 6:13 AM.

The Cost of Love, Fame, and the Young People Takeover...about time!

One of the only unanimous agreements of all people worldwide just happens to be one of the biggest cliches known to mankind "love makes you do crazy things," but it's as true as the sun. History, both personal and public, proves it. The hunger of fame isn't too far off, either. In case you missed it, take some quick hits of some crazy happenings, in no particular order :

• A man in Texas was far too influenced by the work of Hannibal Lecter as he abducted and killed his wife for cheating on him with another man - he stabbed him, too (he's in critical condition). He severed her body, boiled her ear and had a fork sticking out her human flesh on his kitchen table. He turned himself in, being charged with capital murder and is being held with a bond of $2 million. Usually, we would assume that only a white man would do this, but not, he's Black - which is a bit sad because if he was white - news coverage would have explored the psychological past of the killer.
• In some other sick news, a 12 year old boy beat and killed a 17-month old girl for crying while he watched t.v. The 12-year-old is spending time in a juvenile detention center but could be face charges as an adult. In 1999, a 12-year-old killed a six year old and was sentenced to life in prison, he holds the record as the youngest ever. The kid should serve some federal prison time, his public lawyers insists that the juve. system be utilized. He turned himself in.
• All this talk about weird killings is both disturbing and depressing, however, so on to the opposite, killers who got off. A British citizen who spent 20 years on Ohio's death row was set free after he pleaded no contest to three charges dealing with a fire related to the death of a 2-year old (all these killings of children is crazy!) Ken Richey was set free after he came within an hour of being executed for setting an apartment on fire and killed the toddler. He was set free on a deal which required him to leave the country. Prosecutors are even in on this, agreeing the with deal saying that Richey was in harm's way if he didn't leave the country. The international press is really making a big deal of this and surprisingly defending this guy - who, given there is no hardcore evidence but none was really sought after. The deal let him go without him admitting anything - his conviction of 20 years ago, was overturned.
• Switch it up, the attack on Britney Spears continues, there are reports that someone close to her will probably be releasing some outrageous photos of her that "could maker her MTV performance look tasteful." Some pics they must be.

The Young People Takeover Already in 2008, we are witnessing history. Signs of either there is a great year in store or the world is coming to an end - maybe both.

• First, a young boy scout saved the life of the president of Maldives (a chain of islands off the west coast of India) by grabbing the knife of the alleged attacker when he jumped out of the crowd. The kid was 15 - which makes it not that big of a deal, initially I thought the kid was like eight or something, but he's 15 - he's expected to defend himself, and I guess his president, unlike ours, is a role model - a figure who he can look up to.
• The son of the late Benazie Bhutto, the opposition leader of Pakistan has inherited the throne. He is 19-year-old Oxford student, Bilawal Bhutto Zardari, whose had to endure a lot as both his father and mother were assassinated within weeks. He's handled himself with grace and composure and it is easy to say that we're looking at a future international leader, for the better or worse, the jury is still out. The party chose him unanimously and he plans to finish his studies at Oxford and with opposition forces of Pakistan assassinating both of his parents, Zardari said that he fears for his privacy more than he does his life.
• Finally, there are talks that young people will show up to voting polls in November in record numbers. Let's hope so, let's also hope that we all educate ourself about who is the right candidate to not only change this country for the better, but to lead this country for the better as well. Education is very important, especially for this election, it has never been more important for this generation.

More on everything soon.

2008's Great Start

I don't like writing what people can read anywhere else, so I put a twist - learn to deal with my seemingly subjective, objective views - a renaissance revolution. Already so early in the year and the streets are buzzin'. Apparently, Lil Wayne might have a little competition in 2008 for Workhorse of the Year and eventually, rapper of the year. Seeing as how he had a very busy 2007 w/o dropping "The Carter III" he got together quite the following, let's just hope he drops his much anticipated album this year. Not necessarily coming up on his heels but a name to remember for 2008, Young Chris (remember him from the Young Gunz, with Roc-A-Fella & State Property?) Daily, I go on allhiphop.com for my music fix - just to see what's out there. In the first four days of '08 and the last few weeks of '07 Young Chris has been releasing some heat. His latest "No Where" and "The Robbery" compliment what will be his first single, "Coast to Coast" (featuring Bobby V) in the sense that it is a change of pace. Any song with Bobby V on the track - will be for the ladies, whereas "The Robbery" is a very coherent street gangster story and "No Where" speaks of his ambition. What separates a good artist from an average artist or a one hit wonder is his/her ability to tell stories with a harmonic and coherent flow - let's hope he can stay consistent which is the other ingredient for success. Chris shows that he is a good storyteller and has a bunch of potential. He will undoubtedly take a lot of heat for being under Jay-Z for so long - he will get accused of stealing his flow and his style, but what Jay-Z did was revolutionary - everyone takes bits and pieces from his style and flow - the elements of success. Cross your fingers that Young Chris's album "Now or Never" actually drops this year, unlike his competition on '07. I'm looking forward to hearing from both of them.On the other side of the fence of success, is downfall. Britney Spears picked up right where she left off for '08 by losing even partial custody of her two baby boys to the more fit parent the homie K-Fed. Apparently, the mommy of the year refused to give the boys to their "father" after a court monitored visit. She was under the influence of an unknown controlled substance (which is quite the surprise) and had to be taken to the hospital and is on involuntary psychiatric hold - FINALLY! She should probably stay there for a while and get her children taken away, I sure hope my girl Jamie Lynn is more fit of a parent for future references.

crazy ho

In news that is insanely (no pun intended Brit) more imperative than Hollywood f*ckups, President - I mean Senator Obama's magical campaign is still waving it's wand. Big homie Obama decisively won the Iowa Caucus on Thursday and it seems as if he has the momentum in the Democratic Party over John Edwards and Hilary Clinton, who finished second and third respectively. On the other side, the FAR other side, Mike Huckabee won the Republican bid in Iowa, let's hope his victory stops there - he's the epitome of the Conservative that we do not need in office. Off to New Hampshire they go, let the excitement continue! More in Obama later on, especially realistic views on if/when he wins - prepare for a Race War because of the insecurities of Conservative White people.