Going into “NorthBound,” I was looking for two things: voice and moments. Admittedly, I’m relatively new to Glenn Waco, only first hearing him tear up features on Mic Capes’ “Rise and Grind.” Between those features, the slew of tracks he released over the summer, and following him on social media, my impression was a young …
You know what’s ironic about Vice’s “Portland Has a Hip-Hop Problem?” Many local artists complain about getting no love in their hometown and how Portland is a bandwagon city. Yet, almost all of the local publications have covered everything in the Vice article better and not received close to the attention or generated as much …
As I was walked into Safeway this afternoon I passed by an older man with a case of Pabst. The first thought that came to my mind was “sucker juice.” No disrespect to the man but what does it mean when you spend on alcohol? What is the lasting impact? Is it positive? Could …
The biggest irony of the Rick Ross “date rape” controversy was that everyone saw a rise in their profile except female MCs. Everyone from Rosa Clemente to Crunk Feminist to Talib Kweli to Jasiri X made their presence felt in the conversation. I even read an article today interviewing children. With everyone talking about what …
Female MCs Get No Shine and I’m Part of the Problem Read More »
No week goes by without someone talking about how negative rap music is destroying the Black community. Apparently, not just are these ignorant rappers not “real,” but they are killing our children’s minds. This line of thought always bothered me. I’d be lying if I said emcees don’t have an influence, especially on impressionable young …
Believe it or Not, Your Least Favorite Artist Really Isn’t Destroying the Community Read More »
VH1 reminds me of Barack Obama. I’ll lose hope for months on end but then it will deliver a special (or two) that reminds me why I messed with it in the first place. Such was Sunday night’s premieres of “40 Most Shocking Moments in Hip-Hop” and “Planet Rock: The Story of Hip Hop and …
Ten Things VH1’s “Most Shocking Hip Hop Moments” Missed Read More »
How do you sell products to a generation that doesn’t buy anything? As the Internet generation transitions into the workforce, we’re faced with the consequences of a rebellion many of us didn’t realize we were fighting. We grew up being able to get music, movies, news and other media for free, whenever we wanted. Despite …
As we get older we have a tendency to look at some of the things we read as kids, in my case AllHipHop.com and SLAM magazine, the same way we look at professional wrestling. Their rampant typos and strictly Q&A style interviews may not have been the marks of professional journalism but there was a …
[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VfwwcpqqDcw&w=420&h=345] Just for fun, I Twitter searched “portland police” yesterday afternoon. People were buzzing over the police surrounding a man locked in a bathroom who allegedly had a gun. Mayor Sam Adams was even praising the Portland Police Department for their great service. When I looked up the story later in the night, it …
During the 2008 presidential election, some black comics were saying, “It’s not like we’re voting for Flavor Flav.” Maybe not, but remember, we had George W. Bush for eight years. At least Flav hasn’t had attempts on his life by a pretzel and a shoe. Besides, Bush’s presidency was more about his cabinet anyway. Chuck …