One could easily dismiss Melody Ehsani as an exotic fashionista…if one is the sort to judge books by covers. However, upon further review and acquaintance, it is apparent that there are several layers to Melody. She is of Persian decent, but born and reared in L.A. She’s oddly, b-girlish yet unapologetically couture. One that […]
Lubna al-Hussein is facing 40 lashes for wearing tight jeans. On July 3, Sudanese “morality police” burst into a restaurant arresting 18 women, and al-Hussein, for wearing what they morally deemed to be inappropriate clothes. A journalist and former employee of the U.N, al-Hussein is making her case public in hopes of bring attention to […]
Lil’ Wayne, “Whip It Like A Slave,” and the Crisis of Coonery “Music is said to soothe the savage beast, but it may also powerfully excite it. … At an emotional level, there is something ‘deeper’ about hearing than seeing; and sometimes about hearing other people which fosters human relationships even more than seeing […]
(Editor’s Note: This was supposed to be the start of a regular column from hexmurda, a staple of the Detroit Hip-Hop scene. However, the death of Baatin of Slum Village preempted the column and hex has written a column about his fallen comrade. It was originally titled “F**K THIS RAP S**T, I’LL LISTEN TO CLASSICAL.”) […]
When I read the headlines of the death of boxing legend Vernon Forrest, I was stunned, but not nearly as stunned after a friend told me what he released to the internet. I was shocked after seeing what the former champ had sent out on Twitter a mere week prior to his murder. On […]
Kudos to CNN for “Black in America 2”. You get an A for effort and a gold star for correcting the lameness of the first installment. I even peeped a commercial for the upcoming Latino in America. Aside from them trying to educate the masses and convince everyone to empathize with our neighbors lets give […]
“Slave to a label but I own my masters/ Still get it poppin’ without artist and repertoire/” —Pharoahe Monch, “Desire,” Desire, 2007. Last week, LA Times Staff Writer Chris Lee revealed the details of Cash Money artist Drake’s blockbuster record deal. In addition to a $2 million advance payment, he “retains the publishing rights to […]
I don’t know about you but I need racism. Just imagine a world without racism. It would be boring. Cambridge police officers arrested Henry Louis Gates Jr. for supposedly breaking into his own home on July 16th after receiving an anonymous call about someone jimmying the lock to a Cambridge residence. Even more than […]
Paul Scott “I’m kickin’ cold facts so true Feels like I’m livin’ in a zoo” Public Enemy Step Right up! In this cage we have the tame, “Negro-intellectualus.” Notice his freshly pressed shirt and creased pants. Go ahead and pet him. He won’t bite…However, watch out for this next animal, “Thug-ignoramus.” Beware of his gold […]
Last week Prez Obama stood before a packed audience and essentially preached to the choir. He spoke about the great accomplishments of the NAACP and how the organization ironically celebrated its 100th anniversary the same year he became the country’s first (official) African American president. Then he did something that was quite surprising. He […]
“A lot of yall comment on how stupid it is. It might be stupid to you, but this is what we do. We eat, we kick it, we throw money. Don’t make this one situation blow the whole thing out.” Rappers love making it rain on these hoes! Yeaaaaaa-AHHHHHH! Recently, Jermaine “JD” Dupri […]
I am pro-social media, but I am also pro utilizing the medium for some sort of long term, fruitful strategy. It is already happening now, but I predict that in years to come there will be a terrible negative backlash on the open nature of the internet, specifically social media. Right now, there are […]
Pharrell is clearly in love with this Lanvin “Piped Blazer,” because the rapper-slash-producer-slash-rocker has been seen rocking it quite frequently this year. Most recently, Pha-real, as Jay-Z once called him, was seen wearing it to the BAPE Flagstore opening in London. This time, The Neptunes front man wore it with a brown and beige […]
“Euphemisms are misunderstood as mistakes/ But it’s a by-product of the ghetto music we make/” —Canibus, “Poet Laureate II,” Rip the Jacker, 2003. Of the many reasons Hip-Hop music dogged for, one of the most unremarkable is that it teaches bad English—broken English—Ebonics. Critics argue that it celebrates anti-intellectualism, with an emphasis on rhyme rather […]
Jay-Z must respond to The Game with force to this barrage of disses I won’t dilute the point with a bunch of over-intellectual ramblings in an attempt to complicate so simple. So, above you have this editorial in a nutshell, but if you want, read on. Jay-Z is at a proverbial fork in […]
What about your friends will they stand their ground Will they let you down again What about your friends are they gonna be low down Will they ever be around or will they turn their backs on you -TLC (1992) Friends. Sometimes I hate them, I swear I do. I am […]
It is pretty common knowledge that it is high time that the recording industry re-evaluate its practices and business M.O. This is a direct result of the digital era, however I have an archaic response to the resurgence of the new indie and internet movement. Record labels need to make the record deal […]
TODAY WAS almost A GOOD DAY! On Wednesday, July 8th I got out of bed feeling a little bit better than good! IntelligentSeedz were finally going to interview Mr. Rodney Lofton – Superintendent of Trenton Public Schools. We were happy that we had been granted the interview and it was finally about to happen. Mr. […]
“Half these rap lyrics ain’t thought-provoked/ Just a lot of beef till they get caught and smoked/” —GZA, “Illusory Protection,” Grandmasters. “If I rhyme about home and got descriptive/ I’d make 50 Cent look like Limp Bizkit/” —K’Naan, “What’s Hardcore?,” The Dusty Foot Philosopher. Nowadays, nothing seems to annoy this writer more than the fecklessness […]
I took a bit of a break from writing. Life is real and some of my previous editorials had some people after me. I have been running in fear of my life. The thugs…The E-Thugs. I’m petrified of all these E-Thugs roaming the Internet Superhighway terrorizing everybody like they own the ‘web or something. If […]
