Imagine yourself floating through space in a decked out Cadillac, with the bass echoing throughout the galaxy. That’s exactly how Big K.R.I.T. starts this album by creating the planet Cadillactica on the spacey, pimpish intro track “Kreation” This intro is not just a song it’s a total experience. Although just one verse, the song stands firm as a beginning to a journey through the universe. And K.R.I.T puts you in the passenger seat of his pimped out, intergalactic Cadillac throughout the duration of Cadillactica.
While listening to Cadillactica, you may find yourself go through all kinds of emotions. You go from being zoned out in chill mode with “Kreation” to a state of serious thought-provoking moments and reevaluation of existence with “Life” to a series of uncontrollable head-nodding and high adrenaline bursts with the BANG of “My Sub Part 3.” On his 2nd album, Big K.R.I.T was able to deliver on all accounts with Cadillactica. His creativity level is at an all time, lyrically, sonically, and mentally. Every song sounds like more than just a song, each song is carefully crafted and arranged to bring the full potential out of the song.
K.R.I.T.’s lyricism was brought to full potential throughout the album. His poetic background and writing style makes every word important. No word goes without purpose. He makes the type of southern music that is rarely heard, especially today in all genres of music, not just hip hop. The title track, Cadillactica is the epitome of exactly what a title track is supposed to sound like. The energy, lyrics, flow, delivery, and arrangement of that song is perfect. Even the interlude “Standby” is infectious with just a saxophone and K.R.I.T.’s stanzas. One of many examples of his intricate lyricism can be found on the song “Soul Food”
“The acrobats on the corner and they flip/So when them white vans pull up shawty we dip out of view/Coulda been a track star at the school, but it took the police just to get that 4.4 out of you/ Dash, Sprint, Hurdle over those steel gates, They keep us in and keep folk out but we don’t feel safe”
The production and engineering on Cadillactica is top-notch material. K.R.I.T. found a strong chemistry working with other producers on this album, while still carrying majority of the production duties. Throughout his career K.R.I.T.’s music has been highly sample-driven, but on this album we get to see just how talented K.R.I.T. is behind the boards, only using two samples on the entire album. The production is so soulful, organic, and precise with the perfect use of different drum patterns and sounds. You get songs that bang in the whip, along with songs where you can truly appreciate the use of sounds and melodies to create beautiful music. Raphael Saadiq, Terrace Martin, DJ Dahi, Jim Jonsin, and Alex Da Kid all contributed to making Cadillactica the best produced album this year.
The album plays so smoothly, on first listen there’s no way that you could skip one song. It is organic music that we don’t get the privilege of hearing much in today’s music. Cadillactica is the one of the best albums released this year, and the best album from a southern hip hop artist in years.
Migos and Chief Keef’s Glory Boyz Entertainment (GBE) posse have been at war for almost a year now and last night (Nov. 15) their beef turned bloody.
While Migos was performing at the Washington D.C. club Stadium, GBE and the Atlanta trio were involved in a brawl and it ended in what a AHH source called a “bloodbath.” In a now deleted Instagram post, Chief Keef posted a picture holding Migos member Quavo’s chain, but it’s unknown who exactly in the crew took it.
“Nobody really knows who did it,” says our source. “It was like 40 people that beat on Migos, strippers and all. It’s about to be some east coast vs. west coast s**t again.”
From what our source says, it seems that Quavo was the main one involved in the brawl. Migos did not have security with them.
The two rap crews have been beefing more via Twitter lately and things heated up last week when GBE member Capo took to Twitter to detail an altercation he had with Migos while Fredo Santana chimed in with death threats.
Migos Soft as hell Y’all Jus Had 20 n##### And I was by myself F### n#####! Link
Lifetime’s Aaliyah: The Princess of R&B movie arrived on the small screen last night (Nov. 15) and unfortunately met its low expectations. After Aaliyah’s family announced that they were not involved, the excitement for Babygirl’s story to be told turned to uncertainty and doubt. Last night, naysayers were proved right and bashed the flick all over social media. Though Aaliyah, played by Alexandra Shipp, was depicted as sweet, determined and in control of her career, the film was far from impressive. Her fans were not the only ones p##### off; Timbaland hated it too. Check out five thoughts on why this film was a disappointment.
Family Matters
Her family should have been involved. Since they refused give Lifetime rights to Aaliyah’s catalog, the network was forced to use awful background music that sounded like it came from a karaoke machine. Hearing Alexandra Shipp do all the singing made viewers long to hear Aaliyah’s voice even more.The movie also lacked an authentic feel, something that could have been achieved if the actors had heartfelt conversations with her parents, siblings and loved ones.
R.Kelly Is A Creep
Just when we almost forgot about his sex scandal, we were reminded that R.Kelly is a creep. It was disturbing watching the 28-year-old producer fall in love with a 15-year-old Aaliyah. Watching what should have stayed a schoolgirl crush grow into a love story was cringe worthy. Twitter also alleged that the film conflicted with how Aaliyah’s parents actually found out about her marriage. Music writer for the Los Angeles Times Gerrick Kennedy tweeted that her parents intercepted when she and Kelly were getting off a plane for their honeymoon. Eww.
Aaliyah’s Style Is Missed
One thing that was eye-catching during the first half of the movie was the reenactment of Aaliyah’s fashion sense. The baggy jeans and tight tube tops all via Tommy Hilfiger evoked a nostalgia for 90s threads.
The Script And The Cast Need A Do-Over
The script was dull, routine and had a few corny moments (R. Kelly bigging himself up as if he was too big to work with Aaliyah was a bit much). The speeches about how she was destined to be a star and the cliche-feel of her and Dame Dash’s first encounter were so predictable that this writer felt awkwardly embarrassed for the network. To make things worse, the actors that filled in for her longtime collaborators Missy Elliott and Timbaland were far from believable. Chattrisse Dolabaille, who played Missy, was lacking the “Supa Dupa Fly” rapper’s signature finger waves and the plus-size frame she had back in the 90s. Timbaland’s portrayal by Izaak Smith had viewers scratching their heads as well. They didn’t quite hit it on the head with casting Dame Dash’s character either, but they tried. Did anyone notice that the actor that played her brother, A.J Saudin, looks like Drake?
More About Nothing
This biopic was the script to her Behind The Music. We didn’t learn anything new or uncanny about the singer, besides her naive love for R. Kelly and even that became boring. Without her family’s input, this was the best Lifetime could do. Unfortunately, their best wasn’t good enough.
Peewee Longway is abck again with the official video for “Sneakin N Geekin”, a single off of his mixtape The Blue M&M. Longway is one of the rising stars coming out of Atlanta’s trap music scene alongside acts like Migos and Young Thug. He’s even been mentioned as one of the ATLiens On A Next Level Come-Up. Check out the official video for Sneakin N Geekin below.
As her album The Pinkprint is on the way, Nicki drops “Bed Of Lies” featuring Skylar Grey. The first time we’ve heard this track was during her performance on the MTV EMAs, but now we get the full version with CDQ. Check out “Bed of Lies” below:
(AllHipHop News) Kendrick Lamar returned to Saturday Night Live last night (November 15) to perform his latest single “i” during the program. K. Dot appeared wearing black contacts and part of his cornrows undone which caused some viewers to question the TDE emcee’s decision to show up with that particular presentation.
It appears Kendrick used the moment to pay homage to Method Man’s debut solo album Tical. November 15 also happens to be the 20 year anniversary of the release of the Wu-Tang Clan member’s LP. Kendrick’s contacts and hair were reminiscent of how Meth appeared in the video for his classic track “I’ll Be There for You/You’re All I Need to Get By” featuring Mary J. Blige.
The good kid, m.A.A.d city album creator also later returned to SNL to take the stage with Jay Rock. The two Black Hippy members performed Rock’s track “Pay For It.”
Watch Kendrick Lamar’s SNL performances and the video for “I’ll Be There for You/You’re All I Need to Get By” below.
Saturday Night Live has been on a roll with their weekly performances, and last comes to no surprise that the performer was going to be dope. Why? Well, because Kendrick Lamar was the performer for last night’s episode, and he nailed it! The TDE member performed his new single “i” and also brought Jay Rock out to perform “Pay For It”. Check out the videos after the jump.
(AllHipHop News) Last night (November 15) Lifetime aired its much-talked about Aaliyah biopic, and the response on social media was overwhelmingly negative. The R&B singer’s fans were not happy with the depiction, and Baby Girl’s close friend/producer Timbaland addressed the project and the movie’s producer Wendy Williams.
Twitter and Instagram were flooded with memes featuring the trending topics #LifetimeBeLike and #LifeTimeBiopics that clowned the casting choices for the film. Williams’ IG page was also hit with comments bashing the talk show host.
At one point Williams even sent out a tweet that gave the wrong title of one of Aaliyah’s most popular songs. She wrote, “’Let Me Know’ is my favorite Aaliyah song! What’s yours? #AaliyahMovie,” referring to the Detroit native’s remake of The Isley Brothers’ “At Your Best (You Are Love).” The error led to even more backlash aimed at Wendy.
If you’ve been around the hip-hop world lately, ATL has been one of the newest breeding grounds for music as of now. Sure, there’s been some dope artists to come out of the West Coast, the last three years have been a murder spree for the senior members of TDE. But when you look deeply into ATL’s music scene, and the viral impact it’s had on the internet, there’s much more than what meets the eye. Not only has Atlanta prospered in it’s southern sound, but the city’s artists have taken a next step to actually change the sound of music. The ATL artists on this list are doing that now in their own ways, and finally getting the attention that they deserve. Now, some artists on this list are obviously noticed on the mainstream level, but there’s something that makes them a special. That’s for you to find out. Here are the top ATLiens on the Next Level Come U.
Migos
Ok, so we all know that 2014 has been a good year for this energetic down-south trio. Migos has been featured with the biggest stars in hip-hop now ever since Drake appeared on Versace with his own Migos-flow. However, what makes Migos a solid candidate for this list is the diverse moves that you might not know about. Earlier this year, Migos teamed up with Los Angeles EDM producer Carnage for the track
“Bricks”. That’s not enough? How about working with Travi$ Scott (a weird but brilliant Houston rapper) for “Sloppy Toppy”? Migos might have prospered as trap-rappers, however, their unique decisions to team up with artists outside of the normal grain is phenomenal. Maybe Migos might be better than The Beatles. Now, that was a bold statement.
Peewee Longway
Speaking of mentioning “Sloppy Toppy”, there’s no way we can forget Peewee Longway , who was featured on the same track as Migos. This 1017 Brick Squad rapper has appeared on some really good tracks , and even made his to solidify his sound in ATL’s scene. Servin’ Lean was poppin throughout the summer, and he even earned an appearance by ASAP Rocky for the remix, not to mention teaming up with Migos’ offset for “Know About Me”. Longway’s aggressive style of rhyming only adds more toughness to the songs he makes or is featured, and it makes you want to listen to more.
Raury
If you’ve just so happened to have check out The Odd Side (which you need to….ASAP), then you know about the many time’s that Raury’s been mentioned. This young dude has to be one of the most creative artists in of Atlanta right now, hands down (notice how I’ve said artist instead of rapper). Raury’s project Indigo Child is not just hip hop, but a blend of different music genres that create a next-level peace of art. This year alone, Raury has appeared on Sway In The Morning (and murdered “Elevators”), featured with dope producers and bands, and has alledgedly played music for Kanye West, KANYE WEST. If these credentials don’t impress you, what more do you want?
OG Maco
OG Maco isn’t who you think he is. His song “U Guessed It” is a viral hit, and he even teamed up with Migos for what might be one of the most aggressive tracks I’ve came across. However, don’t put Maco in a such a small box, because this young rapper has created a new sound that is fit for only him. Maco’s brash yelling within his rhymes is energized when put together with banging beats, but he’s not afraid to tone it down when the time comes. Many might think that OG Maco’s recent viral acclaim may be the only thing that makes him famous, but when you listen to his music, you might just think twice.
Rome Fortune
If OG Maco is going to end up on this list, it wouldn’t be fair to not include Rome Fortune. This rapper has came a long way, creating a new spectrum of sound to summarize his catalogue. This year alone, Rome Fortune dropped three projects, each of them sounding almost nothing like the other. Mind you, this is right after his previous project Beautiful Pimp was considered one of the best albums of the year by numerous publications. Not to mention his collaborations with producers like SuicideYear, Cubby, and Childish Major is brilliant to say the least. When it comes to Atlanta’s rap scene getting weirder, Rome Fortune has to be the poster child of the evolution of the sound. Hate if you want, but Fortune is only one internet song away from blowing up, but he’s already popping now.
Key!
Key! is quickly making his way to the forefront of ATL’s hip hop scene. While Key! gained success as the co-founder of the local trio Two 9, he started to make his own path as a solo artist. This is both a good and bad thing, because we won’t hear any more verses with Two 9, like his opening verse on“Work Pt. 2”. On the other hand, Key! alone has made some pretty dope verses on two of Atlanta’s most popular tracks in the local scene: “U Guessed It” and “Look At Wrist”, and he’s also was a standout on the Give Em Hell EP.
Father
Ever since I heard Father’s viral hit “Look At Wrist”, I’ve been on a binge listening to his music. This young leader of Awful Records has a weird style of music and a weird style of showing it, but he will only make you more curious to find out what Father is about. Father’s cool voice may creep behind his own odd production, but don’t let the chill demeanor fool you, his concerts get crazy. With all of being said, Father is another young name that’s making some big moves.
ForteBowie
Forte Bowie has been an underrated artist for a while, he even earned a spot on our list for 5 Underrated Artists On Soundcloud. However, as time goes on, Bowie is only getting better as the world continues to sleep on his talent. But give it a few more features and a full project, and a lot more people will bangs with Forte Bowie. What makes this rapper so special is the fact that he can produce a song, sing the chorus, and rap a verse. His style of music mixes the 808s and hi-hats in southern hip hop, with the smoothness of R&B. ForteBowie’s versatility has been showcased all over his soundcloud, making remixes for popular songs like Pharrell’s “Happy” or Usher “Good Kisser”, or creating his own version of PARTYNEXTDOOR’s “Recognize” (which kind of sounds a bit better than the original to be honest). Trust and believe, Bowie’s gonna get his soon.
ILoveMakonnen
Whether you’ve heard “Tuesday” on the radio, seen a meme using the chorus for the song, heard his holy verse on “Look at Wrist”, you’ve heard about ILoveMakonnen. He just started getting big this year, and this is only the beginning. The new OVO signed rapper got Drake to remix “Tuesday”, he’s been working with big producers like Metro Boomin and MikeWillMadeIt, and his single “I Don’t Sell Molly No More” is now getting as big as Tuesday. Also, Makonnen has worked with at least three artists on this list. My man’s hustle is real.
Young Thug
C’mon son, why would Young Thug not be on this list. Ever since Drake and Kanye been banging “Danny Glover” on social media, the world soon started to hear more about this often misunderstood rapper throughout 2014. He’s been featured on a ton of songs, and continues to be talked about for his moves in and out of the studio. His style of music has been heavily criticized, but still recognized as the most prospective rapper in ATL’s music scene. If all of the artists on this list made a big come-up in Atlanta this year, Thugga made the true next level come-up.
Key is making a come up, and he’s one of those guys in ATL that you might want to check out. Recent, Key! teamed up with his friend and Two 9 member Wavy Wallace for Tighten Up. Video directed by Donny Slater.
Well, it look’s like Hannibal Buress has definitely caused an uproar after his comedic thoughts on Bill Cosby’s past alleged sexual assault charges. After a week of a failed meme generator on Twitter, and the Washington Post’s column regarding one of his alleged victims, things tend to have gotten worst for the legendary comedian through NPR. This morning, Bill Cosby and his wife Camille appeared on Weekend Edition with host Scott Simon on NPR to talk about their art collection. However, at the near end of the show, Simon had to ask Bill Cosby about the resurface of his alleged charges, and there was silence:
SCOTT SIMON: “This question gives me no pleasure Mr. Cosby, but there have been serious allegations raised about you in recent days.”
BILL COSBY: [SILENCE]
SIMON: “You’re shaking your head no. I’m in the news business. I have to ask the question. Do you have any response to those charges?”
COSBY: [SILENCE]
SIMON: “Shaking your head no. There are people who love you who might like to hear from you about this. I want to give you the chance.”
COSBY: [SILENCE]
SIMON: “Alright. Camille and Bill Cosby. They have lent 62 pieces from their collection of African and African-American art to create an exhibit called Conversations: African and African American Artworks in Dialogue. It’s now on display at the Smithsonian National Museum of African Art through early 2016. Thank you both.”
As a result of this morning’s happenings, Bill Cosby’s appearance on David Letterman November 19th has been cancelled. As this story continue to get worst, we’ll keep you updated.
So this is the first time that big Rihanna and Beyonce music news was dropped without the internet immediately breaking. During today’s weekend update, DJ Skee announced news that Rihanna may be releasing a new album to end the fourth quarter of the year. Skee says that last week, the “Pour It Up” star played 10 new records for label executives at a secret location in NYC, and that one of the new singles to look out for from Rihanna was titled “I’ve Been Searching for Something to Ignite Me When I’m Alone.”
On the same update, DJ Skee also announced that we may be hearing a new Beyonce single as close as next week. The new single would be similar to “Partition”, mixing up R&B with, what Skee calls, “Ratchetesque” music.
Check out the DJ Skee’s update below, and tell us what you think about the big news.
Now this would be weird if there is any truth to the rumor. Somehow, I am going to be hopeful that it is not true. We know now that Solange is getting married this weekend. This we know. We know that Beyonce will be at the wedding too, which includes her hubby Alan Ferguson
. BUT, I am hearing from a very reliable source that nether Jay Z nor her own dad Mr. Mathew Knowles is invited to the wedding! Her DAD. And we all know that she and Jay had their fracas in the elevator. I’m thinking she needs to invite Jay since he didn’t knock her out when she assaulted him. But, I’ll defer to Kermit on that. Anyway, I do find it a bit crazy that Jay might not be there and Beyonce may go on without him. Sounds like a big argument at home tonight unless Jay is like me. As for Mathew Knowles, I think Solange is disappointed in him as a man with all that baby momma drama and cheating on their mother stuff. I hate weddings and wouldn’t want to be there anymore than I would want to be eaten alive by termites.
Red Bull Music Academy recently made Future Instruments 2014, a site showcasing how instruments would be 200 years from now. The instruments provided were thought up by different music artists in the present, with Tyler, the Creator being one of the artists to come up with an idea. Here is Tyler’s invention, the Shout Box.
In the year 2214 everyone I know, including myself, will be dead. To be honest, I think the world would have already ended by 2214, and if it hasn’t, there probably won’t be a lot of music being made. But let’s just say music is being made. What it’s going to sound like is a question that a lot of musicians tend to ask themselves. With all the genre-blending in 2014, one can only imagine what human ears will be accustomed to 100 years from now. Will the tempos be sped up? Will subject matter like love and cars still be a thing? Will humans still be using the same instruments? Probably not.
We have keyboards with every sound with the push of one button. And with the rise in popularity of EDM, most of those instruments aren’t even used, which leads me to believe that in 2214, the popular instrument will be the human voice. Screaming. Yes, screaming. Different ways of screaming. Pitched up, pitched down, panned to the left, and so on. Someone will create a small cube box where the artist can scream into it, and it will have every single effect possible to make the scream distinct from other ones. 1,000 buttons on it. No more drums, synths, strings or basslines. The cube will have the option to change your screaming into one of those instruments, similar to a MIDI keyboard, but overall, screams are going to be clogging the radio.
Am I into it? F### no, but as time passes the younger generations are going to be so hyped on it that it doesn’t matter what I think. I’ll be old and dead. Oh, and the cubes will come in pretty colors, to wear on your head or make it easy to fit in your pocket.
You can check out more of these future instruments by clicking here.
Last night, ASAP Ferg dropped the new track “Perfume” via Soundcloud. The new cut was announced to be the first single off of his upcoming Gangsta Grillz hosted mixtape Ferg Forever. Though the beat hits hard with Ferg’s rhymes, this Philo$ Cult is pretty eerie and dark. Then again, if you’re used to songs like “Cocaine Castle”, than you should be used to this after a minute. Check out “Perfume” below.
If there’s one artist that loves Whitney Houston, it is Sam Smith!
Hit-maker and famed recorder producer Rodney “Darkchild” Jerkins is celebrating his 20th anniversary in the music business with a commemorative album of hits he has written and or produced with some of music’s brightest stars. In addition to his announcement that Ariana Grande and Jessie J would be recording his produced hit “The Boy Is Mine” (originally recorded by Brandy and Monica), he also revealed that soul singer Sam Smith would be covering Whitney Houston’s “It’s Not Right But It’s Ok.”
In an interview with Hits Daily Double, Jerkins revealed Sam Smith’s involvement in the project.
“Sam [Smith] is doing “It’s Not Right But It’s Okay” by Whitney Houston, which Sam told me was the song that made him want to sing,” the 37-year-old said. “When I asked him if he’d be a part of this project he was like, “No one else can do that song but me!” Sam’s the truth. He has a great heart and he’s genuine. His music speaks for who he is. This is a project I’m really looking forward to.”
Flashback to ’99 with the “It’s Not Right But It’s Ok” video below.
I know this broke last night, but I had a hot date. Kelly Rowland having a baby really got to the kid. Had to find a new love. Well that new love ain’t Draya. An old boyfriend may have some seriously ill feelings towards her, because there is a new sex tape of her rolling around the internet. I don’t know too much about Draya, but from what I understand, she has known about this for some time and has tried to avert it. She failed, clearly. Not posting it here, but if you feel like a pervy person, peep this.
On Day 13 of Red Bull’s Sound Select Presents: 30 Days in LA, Run the Jewels, Mystery Skullz and Thurz more than lived up to the hype, delivering a hyped up show that featured appearances from DJ Quik, Rage Against the Machine’s Zach de la Rocha and drummer Travis Barker of Blink 182.
Before the show AllHipHop had the opportunity to catch up with Thurz in an interview at Takami Sushi Robata, up 21 floors high above downtown Los Angeles to talk about his experience with Red Bull and the impending show.
In describing his experience with Red Bull’s Sound Select, Thurz reveled in the opportunity to perform and take part in the Sound Select series having been part of the series’ production in the past.
“Sound Select is an incredible program, I got introduced to it by helping out on the production end with a lot of indie bands. I curated some acts, I ended up doing a single for it and then I opened up for Run the Jewels a while back. After that I was playing the music for everyone at Red Bull and the relationship kept building and the relationship moved forward. I eventually brought some friends out to help complete the EP and we got it all done. To see it all come to fruition and see it all happen, its just a blessing – this has been crazy, they are really breaking new artists at Red Bull.” Thurz explained.
Sound Select artists kicked off the night with Thurz celebrating his Designer EPrelease complete with a full band and a few special guests of his own, including DJ Quik, Overdoze and more. Also rocking the stage was LA-based one-man noisemaker Mystery Skulls who got the crowd hype with an eclectic set of electronic dance music full of heavy breakdowns and electromagnetic sounds.
Later in the night Run the Jewels killed the stage as powerhouse rap duo Killer Mike and El-P, played tunes off of their critically acclaimed new album, RTJ2 .
Gangsta Boo was also on deck for the show as she took control of the crowd for her song with the powerhouse duo “Love Again” (Akinyele Back).
Audience members were treated to limited-edition Run The Jewels posters that were live screen printed at the venue. For those familiar with the project know their effort is accompanied by what might be the artwork of the year for an album and/or single so the posters were super dope! Check out the pics below!
After dropping his first official mixtape “The Visual“, North Carolina artist KidCali returns with the quickness as he drops off his brand new single “F.S.A.” and unleashes it to the world. Putting those that dismissed him in his rear view, Kid holds back no punches as he has some words for those trying to make amends, letting them know it’s way to late for apologies. Make sure you pick up his new project and be on the look out for steady releases as the rising young artist is building his empire one track at a time.
I was introduced to Pablo Picasso, Rembrandt, and Leonardo Divinci because of the necessity of historical art education in elementary school. I remember staring at the Mona Lisa thinking she was incredibly ugly and eluding to it in class discussion. My teacher shot me a look that could kill then reminded me of the basis of art, its commitment to exploration, individual interpretation, objectivity, and to never discount the beauty in anyone’s artistic expression. “Beauty is in the eye of the beholder, was the lesson.”
The other day, I woke to conversations about Kim Kardashian breaking the internet. My first thoughts were ones of another sex tape leak because today’s standards of newsworthy buzz are incredibly low and defunct and we’ve seen Kim have sex already so nothing else could top it beyond perhaps an orgy. Imagine my surprise when I viewed the notorious Paper Magazine Photography largely circulated as Art and contributions to add to the legacy of Jean-Paul Goude.
Being a woman of color, the recent Kardashian Art has no significance to me primarily because nearly every woman I know has been walking around since the 80’s showcasing the exact same type of talent but there have been no awards or trophies for it. In the words of Drake, “ain’t no awards for that.”
In fact, the very pose and posture of present day Kim emulates the essence of a woman of color originally photographed by Goude due to his curiosity and interest in the objectification of the Black Body. His art, both past and present, in this context to me is nothing more than modern day minstrel, Sara Bartman exploitation of a culturally distinctive identifier predominantly in Black Women. I cannot find pride and appreciation in the art as it singularly reminds me of the very discriminatory standards of beauty, art, and most importantly America. Why is the exact same ass carried by 1 out of every 2 women of color art when showcased by Kim Kardashian? A piece of me and my ancestors’ cultural inheritances is now the new it accessory and people are able to showcase it and put it on to get ahead as contributions to art. This confounds me.
I lived through the 80’s, an era where women of color were spectacles and tried to hide our ill proportioned posteriors because of stares, villainous remarks, and societal promotions of ideologies like less is more. In the 90’s White Men and Women asked me questions about how it “got that way” and what I did to contribute to the size and circumference. Even in college I experienced modern day Sara Bartman inquiries and could only count on Black Men to appreciate the mechanics and build of the Black Body AND even in this case there were occasional jokes, donkey and horse noises made as I walked past the student union or large groups of men.
I remember witnessing the first wave of societal posterior love with Murder Inc. when Jennifer Lopez circulated through various Ja Rule videos. In my opinion, it was the first time mainstream America started to look at curvaceous women in a different light, one with less contempt and judgment but the lines of what was natural, organic, and acceptable were still ever present nonetheless. It was still not natural or beautiful to have a large posterior. It was a rarity and the memo in circulation was one that gave provisional acceptance for women carrying one that were famous and seemingly beautiful.
Now in 2014, I wake up like this, mechanical a####, ass shots, White Women with a####, a#### on promo a#### for sale, ass acceptance speeches whilst awards and trophies are being given out and I have yet to receive one. In fact, no woman with an organic bottom is receiving any love for today’s most fabulous accessory. Instead we are now taunted and told they look fake, too small, or asked where we purchased them. Or better yet if we visit the ocean or poolside are subject to stares because what Kim showcases in magazines is not the authentic look of a mature and weathered ass. Men look disturbed and confused at the sight of natural stretch marks and blemishes as if carrying the equivalent of a bowling ball on your backside should come blemish free. It is not simply enough to keep it tight; it must also appear as smooth and clear as a baby’s bottom.
My first thought after viewing the photography was wow in all my years of having a rotund ass I’ve never managed to keep it blemish free. There are no surgeries or miracle celebrity creams to keep an organic ass that beautiful, especially one that works out, endured childbirth, etc. In fact, I was likely born with ass stretch marks because it expanded from inception and continued to increase over the years.
There is no amount of squats, kickbacks, marathons, or dermatological invents to combat the effects of gravity on my skin as it shaped to create the applebum.
At any rate, I am not upset with Kim or the Kardashian clan as they know exactly what to do to stay relevant and paid. They have the perfect marketing formula and recipe to monetize from the ignorance of today’s millennials. If an award or trophy is being given out let it be for that, their business savvy and command for understanding the perverse psychology of today’s consumer.
I’m also not disturbed by Kim being a new mother and taking risqué photography as how you enter the game is typically how you exit. She has to maintain a certain brand persona for continuity sake. To date, her overwhelming talent is being bold (risqué) and beautiful so showcasing the chocha is one of her proven effective methodologies and a best practice in the way she conducts business.
If I have any upset it lies in the fact we live in a cruel disillusioned world where the beauty of my Black is only acceptable when someone else puts it on. A world where we as people of color often exploit ourselves to conform to what is acceptable despite us knowing the cost and burden our youth and children will inherit at the hands of our irresponsibility.
What I know about Kim is she now has a Black Child so she will experience an awakening about the life and times of being Black in America AND there is no amount of money or no ass size big or small to combat the double standards or prejudice North West will experience.
Rearing a Black Child in today’s society is a feat even if you have money because anything is possible. Poverty is no longer the largest key indicator of potential failure in parenting, its opposite wealth is just as powerful and influential.
KimYe have a task on their hands like none other and no marketing trajectory, money, or privilege will prepare them for life as parents of a biracial child. There is no art and barely any beauty in the authentic Black experience one suffers at the hands of America even with a pinch of Black in their ancestry. Finding the balance and art in this plight makes one the real MVP. The trophies and awards should be given out for that, let’s see if any arrive.
