Hearts broken, but we can't give up

Jarvis De Berry is an awarding winning journalist and editorialist at the New Orleans Times-Picayune..He along with members of the New Orleans Times-Picayune Staff recently won a Pulitzer Prize for their amazing reporting post-Hurricane Katrina and also for an open letter to Mr.Bush concerning the Hurricane Katrina Fiasco entitled Dear Mr. President...Mr. De Berry like W.E. A.L.L. B.E.'s founder and Minista of Information R2C2H2 Tha Artivist is an alum of Washington University and The John B. Ervin Scholars Program...Mr. Deberry can be e-mailed at jdeberry@timespicayune.com or called at (504) 826-3355

On a Saturday night in December 1997, mothers Joycelyn Powe and Eloise James stood next to one another on a second-floor landing at the Fischer public housing complex in Algiers.

They had already watched James' 21-year-old son be wheeled away on the paramedics' gurney. He had been shot three times in his thigh and lower legs, but was expected to be OK.

The two mothers were standing next to one another talking to me. They came together after I had asked the crowd of onlookers two questions.

First: "Does anybody know who got shot?" James raised her hand and said, "My son got shot."

Second: "Does anybody know who shot him?" Powe raised her hand and said, "My son shot him."

Just as James told me all the things I wanted to know about her son, Powe was just as open in answering my questions about hers. She had, she explained to me, been asking officials to pick up her 16-year-old boy since the week before when he'd dropped out of a juvenile rehabilitation center. "And now this happened," she said.

Then she leaned over and placed a kiss on Eloise James' cheek. "I'm sorry that happened," she said. "I didn't raise him like that."

The mother of the victim accepted the gesture. She said, "We're only mothers. It's not our fault."

I lingered on that exchange for years. I was struck by the gesture and the apology that it communicated. I had to admit that, in a way, the mother of the victim was right. Both women had already admitted to being so unnerved by the violence around them that they spent most of their time indoors. So she was correct to say it wasn't their fault.

On the other hand, the way she said it, with such a tone of defeat, suggested that she thought that there was nothing that could be done, that the violence was inevitable and that the best thing to do was to lock her doors extra tight.
MORE

Not Acceptable

Jarvis De Berry is an awarding winning journalist and editorialist at the New Orleans Times-Picayune..He along with members of the New Orleans Times-Picayune Staff recently won a Pulitzer Prize for their amazing reporting post-Hurricane Katrina and also for an open letter to Mr.Bush concerning the Hurricane Katrina Fiasco entitled Dear Mr. President...Mr. De Berry like W.E. A.L.L. B.E.'s founder and Minista of Information R2C2H2 Tha Artivist is an alum of Washington University and The John B. Ervin Scholars Program...Mr. Deberry can be e-mailed at jdeberry@timespicayune.com or called at (504) 826-3355

We've shown we can force the system to change. Now let's stop the bloodshed
Sunday, June 25, 2006

You and I together are about to focus more attention than we ever have before on the way our criminal justice system operates; more specifically, in the ways that it doesn't operate as it should.
I'm guessing that I am not alone in my disgust and, that you, too, are tired of picking up the paper and reading a story about yet another murder and then reading quotes from officials who tell us that our growing alarm is unwarranted.
We're not stupid. We know propaganda when we hear it. We know the difference between spin and the unvarnished truth. Whereas the New Orleans Police Department uses COMSTAT (an acronym for computer statistics) to measure crime trends, as citizens, we know that crime is more than just statistics.

Technically, crime could go down if fewer people wrote bad checks. Crime could go down if fewer car stereos were stolen. Crime could go down if fewer husbands battered their wives. But if those crimes diminish to zero and there's a simultaneous increase in the number of people killing others, then statistics be damned. Crime is on the rise.
If criminals are getting more brazen -- shooting police officers or unloading dozens of rounds of ammo into a SUV filled with teenagers -- then it's only natural that law-abiding people are going to grow frightened.
Therefore, the first thing you and I have got to do is to let it be known to everybody who plays a role in the criminal justice system -- police officers, prosecutors and judges -- that we aren't going to accept any more excuses for their failures.
We're fair-minded people, you and I. We know that everybody who gets arrested isn't guilty of a crime. We know that not everybody who gets arrested should be prosecuted. We know that not everybody who is prosecuted is going to be, or even should be, convicted.
But after allowing for the exonerations and acquittals of innocents, we expect our criminal justice system to take bad actors off the street: not just for 60 days, not just for the time between arrest and their scheduled court date, and certainly not for the few hours it takes an attorney to find a judge opposed to the very idea of suspects being locked up.
Police Superintendent Warren Riley said, "The biggest problem in fighting crime is that our criminals don't fear the justice system."
Why should they fear it? MORE

Do It For 'Pac, Do It For Justice For All of Us And Not Just Some of Us...

Hip-hop's Next Big Stop: Capitol Hill
By Davey D

Today (Friday) marks what would have been the 35th birthday of slain rapper Tupac Amaru Shakur, and this year is the 10th anniversary of his death.

With more than 40 million albums sold, the vast majority after his murder, Tupac remains a revered figure around the world. Unfortunately, the mainstream media highlight his thug persona to the point that manyforget Tupac was the son of a Black Panther and a well-read, politically astute artist. In fact, shortly before his death, he had set in motion a plan to encourage fans to become engaged in politics.

Tupac did not believe one should just go to the polls, cast a vote and call it a day. He believed one's vote was a way to "chin check'' politicians who hadn't done right by the community. Shortly before his murder, Tupac held a press conference with Snoop Dogg and MC Hammer to announce plans for politicizing the 6 million fans who had bought his last album. Snoop and Hammer intended to do the same with their fans.

Those plans did not arise in a vacuum. Earlier, Tupac had called for action against the Berkeley City Council, which had declared a moratorium on rap concerts in its city after a violent incident at the Berkeley Community Theater. Artists and fans showed up en masse at a council meeting to demand a reversal of the decision. A Digital Underground member warned that the group already had made history by getting more than 2 million people to do the Humpty Dance and that it would be a shame if it had to make history again by urging fans to vote the council out of office.
More

An Open Letter to Hip Hop About Some Real Important Shyt by Davey D

Dear Folks who say they Love Hip Hop

I wish there was a way to make this issue of Net Neutrality more interesting. I wish there was a way to spice it up and make it compelling like some sort of beef within the rap industry. Maybe I should get Brad and Angelina to talk about it instead of their baby. Maybe Lindsay Lohan or Paris Hilton can utter a few words and force us to take more of an interest.

I wish Cam'ron spent his vast money holding press conferences, dissing punk ass Congress for taking tainted money from Verizon, SBC, and Comcast instead of going after Jay-Z. Im glad Jay-Z ignored Camron, unfortunately he remained silent as the President of Def Jam on this important issue. We'll see what happens after Def Jam finds it difficult or too costly to send out their e-post cards alerting me and others of their latest releases

I'm sorry Miss Jones on Hot 97 was so upset and enraged that she felt compelled to make headlines calling Mary J Blige a bitch for not shouting her out at last weeks Summer Jam. Its too bad that she didnt use her 3-4 hours a day of airtime in the nations largest city to call the greedy Congress people who accepted money from these corporations Bitches. There aint gonna be any shout outs if the Senate follows Congress in passing this bill. Maybe she'll step it up when her parent company Emmis finds that folks from all over the country can no longer easily access their archived interviews on their website.

It's too bad that many of us found this issue 'too complicated' and 'too overwhelming' and hence directed our attention to Ludacris and Ice Cube's beef with Oprah. This is the feedback I got after stories ran on my website as well as AllHipHop.

Shyt I'm sorry Oprah was too busy telling Ed Lover that she really does love Hip Hop and that she listens to 50 Cent and his violent ass all damn day instead of alerting her millions of viewers about the issue of Net Neutrality.

More...

Blacks vs. illegal immigrants from http://www.ByronCrawford.com

Big story today in the LA Times about blacks and illegal immigration. Most black people, it seems, are either against illegal immigration or are avoiding getting involved in the debate one way or the other.

The best argument they could find for blacks being in favor of illegal immigration (or as O-Dub has taken to calling it, the immigrant rights movement) is some jig who works for the "urban division" of some marketing firm in LA.

MORE

Anybody But Blacks...

If you want to see more episodes of "The Arthur 'Soldier Boy Grip' Taylor Chronicles" please visit the official website

Introducing The Madd Eater

If you haven’t found the time, or had the chance, to read, watch, learn, or think about the foods that we eat, I highly encourage you to do just that. I recommend Fast Food Nation by Eric Schlosser and Super Size Me, the much criticized documentary on the fast food epidemic narrated by Morgan Spurlock. Both sources demonstrate how important and influential the fast food industry has become and how its far reaching effects impacts us all in some way. Those impacts can be felt in the political arena, through social interaction, economic and environmental conditions, and quite obviously, in our health and total well-being.

Who am I? Let me take a step off of my soapbox for a moment. I am a 20-something who currently resides and works in Northern Virginia. The area, though expensive offers a lot of options and resources that are not prevalent in other regions of the globe. My life as been greatly influenced, first by these two sources, but subsequently by the many other resources I have and still are researching. I must reiterate that I am not in fact trying to preach to anyone or tell them what to do. I am not trying to tell you what’s best for you because frankly I don’t have the expertise to do that. I just find this information fascinating and helpful to my way of life. My plan is to contribute to this site, W.E. A.L.L. B.E., bi-weekly. But with the rigors of life, it will probably end up being as time permits. I do, however, encourage all of the loyal visitors to W.E. A.L.L. B.E. to read and contribute to my column. We’re all finding our way and learning everyday. I don’t have all the answers. I am a work in progress. As Steve Harvey said, “Don’t trip, He’s not finished with me yet.”
More...

In the style of Josephine Baker

Hey yall we need to all recognize that this is the Centennial Year Celebration of the Great International Diva known as the incomparable Ms. Josephine Baker...In honor of this milestone the world renowned Sheldon Concert Hall and Galleries of St. Louis,Mo. USA is showing an exhibition in Josephine Baker's hometown of St. Louis, Mo. USA which not only celebrates her birth, but also her life and amazing achievements...The exhibit will be open to the public until August 26, 2006...My friend Mrs. Olivia Lahs Gonzales is the curator of the exhibit and is actually quoted in the following USA Today Article (Congrats Olivia!!!)


By Maria Puente, USA TODAY

Few Americans better exemplified the Art Deco aesthetic than Josephine Baker: long, sleek, sculptural and unmistakably Modern. Now a centenary exhibit tells the story of how an African-American street urchin, underappreciated in her native country in her lifetime, became an international star and helped define a style.

Baker (1906-75), born in St. Louis, grew up poor, black, limber and ambitious. She was still a teen when she joined a dance troupe and left for Paris, where the French were mad for anything associated with Africa, and the Art Deco movement was about to explode in the world arena.

Sexually liberated and reveling in her own body, Baker caused an immediate sensation by dancing naked except for a banana skirt. One famous 1929 shot by glamour photographer George Hoyningen-Huene depicts Baker, naked but for a long cloth and strands of beads draped in front of her, as a living Art Deco sculpture.

"She helped popularize Art Deco, and she epitomized the style — her look was extremely sleek and almost machine-like, her hair like a cap," says Olivia Lahs-Gonzales, director of the Sheldon Art Galleries in St. Louis and curator of Josephine Baker: Image & Icon, on view through Aug. 26. (The exhibit goes to the National Portrait Gallery in Washington, D.C., starting Nov. 23.)

Baker was just as fabulous with her clothes on: Courted by designers and even architects, she turned herself into one of the world's first style celebrities, in keeping with the Art Deco celebration of the new and rejection of tradition.

The Art Deco style favored an industrialized, streamlined look characterized by elegance, strong geometrics, polished surfaces and use of black and white. Starting after World War I, it dominated decorative art, fashion, jewelry, textiles, furniture design, interior decoration and architecture, and it continues to have influence today. Here are some ways to achieve the look of Josephine Baker in the home.

Happy Birthday 2Pac!!! *June 16, 1971-September 13, 1996*

An audio tribute to the life and legacy of 2Pac
http://odeo.com/audio/1334603/view


An Interview With 2Pac's Mom Afeni Shakur

An Interview With 2Pac Father's Mutulu Shakur

An Open Letter To Afeni Shakur From R2C2H2 Tha Artivist

Some websites of note concerning the life and legacy of 2Pac:
2Pac's Official Website
Thug Life Army

Cuz'n Donna's Kitchen Presents: When The Law Breaks The Law...

Copyrighted Image BY R2C2H2 Tha Artivist
Welcome to Cuz'n Donna's Kitchen where down home southern fried wit and corn meal battered mother nurture sense is all mixed, stewed and cooked in a big hot boiling ole' pot on a big black coal burning stove known as Da Truth to not only make food for thought, but also for the soul...Cuz'n Donna, with her dead on observations, tried and true wisdom and timeless messages, is the Black woman version of Mark Twain…Please look out for more installments of Cuz'n Donna's Kitchen comin' to yall from the Magnolia State ya heard...

Last Friday night I rode the team bus with the North Panola Cougars to Coldwater for a tournament that they were hosting. I had clearance with high school principal Lucinda Carter, who also o.k'd it for my five grandsons to ride as well. I had all three of my grown children's boys, ranging from two years to 11 years old. I sat through the girls game just fine, having placed them all on the first seat of the bleachers, to keep an eye on them and take good quality action shots from courtside. They were never out of my sight. As I sat there, I began to talk with a police officer from Coldwater. We were laughing and talking all through the first game, as if we had known each other for a while. Approximately five minutes into the boys game, an altercation on the home side, stopped the game briefly, as security and cops rushed to see what was going on. No blows were exchanged, just loud yelling. So, about five maybe ten minutes later decided to walk downstairs where I had seen all parties involved taken. I went down a winding corridor and followed the continuing shouting matches. I stood about 25 feet from where they had stopped; in a public hallway, and not behind closed doors. As I turned to leave , a plain clothes cop with a badge around his neck, a uniformed cop, and Coldwater high school principal, came running up behind me screaming at me, saying"Give us that film, or better still give us your cameras. had an action shot camera on my shoulder and a small digital, that I took the two snapshots with.Since they were getting bent out of shape, I offered to delete them rather than give up equipment that wasn't mine.The principal saw me delete one. That wasn't good enough, they still wanted both cameras. The plain clothes guy and I were playing tug-o-war with the digital, so I eventually let go. I didn't want to feed their ferocity.

They kicked me out of the game after getting both cameras, and I asked if I could go upstairs to get my camera bag. "You're not going any where!'' I asked if I could go get my grandsons, and another big NO! The cop who was standing courtside intervened and offered to go get the boys for me. He had been playing with them and some of their hard headedness was funny to him."A kid's gonna be a kid," he said. When he came back we were escorted out the back door, never to return again. The good cop didn't speak up in our defense, but his kindness before this matter, overshadowed that. He walked us to the bus. I was telling him that my First Amendment rights were being violated, and he nodded in agreement. We had to sit on that cold bus. Luckily my niece left before the game was over and took us back to Como. I came home and called Ruoert Howell of the Panolian to inform him of the night's events. He made a phone call or two and Coldwater police chief had to bring them both back that same night. They even took my press pad, and searched my equipment bag and took my note pad. How ignorant is that? Well, I'm not gonna take this lying down. If they had just only taken the cameras, I could eventually get past that, but they were messing with flesh of my flesh. No one knew where I was, and if something had happened to one of them I could have very easily been charged with child endangerment. I'm glad it never made it that far. The game may be over, but they haven't heard the last of me yet. My neighbors can vouch for me when I say that I am used to fighting my own battles, by myself.The principal has brought the negative publicity on himself and the cops who assisted him in humiliating me. While I was being lead out the back door like Kunta Kinte', I asked why I had to go out the back . No one answered.
Peace Y"all!
Cuz'n Donna
Cuz'n Donna would like fo' yall, fans and hatas included, to holla back...Please leave your comments or e-mail r2c2h2@gmail.com and Tha Artivist will make sure that your thoughts and questions will reach Cuz'n Donna!!!

The Roots of Rap: How 'New Music' Got Started

A Limelight Exclusive By Byron Lee

Hard drum beats and booming bass. Rhymes that are used to sell everything from cars to fast food. Fashion that screams individuality and sets the latest trends.

Rap music has gone from a marginalized, urban expression to America's dominate youthculture. In this month's Limelight, we will uncover the origins of this music and trace its growth to the present day.
THE FATHER OF HIP-HOP: When South Bronx DJ Kool Herc decided to repeatedly play the "break" of the rock, disco, and funk songs on his playlist (the "break" being the middle part of the song, the part most conducive to dancing), he took the pivotal first step in creating hip-hop.

The invention of hip-hop came, as most inventions do, through necessity. South Bronx DJ Kool Herc loved the way that his patrons would react to the breaks of rock, disco, and funk songs, (the "break" of a song being the middle part of a song, the part most conducive to dancing) but would be frustrated by the brevity of each break. He then came up with an idea that earned him the name "The Father of Hip-hop": he began to "extend" the break by repeatedly playing it.The crowd responded by doing more complex dance moves that would eventually be known as “breakdancing” (not because of the moves that they were executing, but because of the part of the song, “the break,” that they were dancing to). Adding on to the party vibe were people who would speak chants to bring the festivities to the next level. Sometimes, the best speakers (known as MCs, or Masters of Ceremonies),would speak in rhymed couplets, using lines such as"Yes, yes, y'all. To the beat, y'all." in between verses in order to collect their thoughts. Thus, the format of the modern rap song was born. Furthermore, these MCs would acknowledge people that they knew in the crowd, beginning the custom of "shouting out" that continues in rap to this day. In 1979, the Sugar Hill Gang cemented this party atmosphere on record and in video with the song "Rapper's Delight," the first widely known rap recording.

NO FLASH IN THE PAN: Turntable pioneer Grandmaster Flash used the training he received in his original profession (electrician) to turn a light switch into the first crossfader (the device that allows a DJ to cut back and forth between two records that are playing at the same time). His ingenuity and technical proficiency continue to be an inspiration for many DJs today.

The importance of the DJ in the creation of rap is further illustrated by the importance of Grandmaster Flash and the advent of Turntablism (using turntables and vinyl records to manipulate prerecorded bits of music as if one were playing an instrument). Flash, born Joseph Sadler, used the training he received in his original profession (electrician) to turn a light switch into the first crossfader (the device that allows a DJ to cut back and forth between two records that are playing at the same time). Flash’s song “The Adventures of Grandmaster Flash on the Wheels of Steel” is regarded as one of the first widely heard recordings of turntable wizardry, making Flash the forefather of such modern day practitioners as frequent Beastie Boys collaborator Mix Master Mike.(Flash’s protégé, Grand Wizard Theodore, would add onto Flash’s creation by pioneering a skill known as“cutting,” wherein the DJ puts his hand on a record to chop up a particular sound or word.) Furthermore, “The Message,” a song Flash recorded with the rappers in the supergroup Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five, is recognized as a sobering slice of everyday urban life.
MORE...

MY OPEN LETTER TO MS. AFENI SHAKUR THE MOTHER OF 2PAC

This letter was written in the summer of 2001, the summer before my fourth and final year at Washington University in St. Louis...So far to my knowledge I haven't been successful in getting this letter to Ms. Shakur or her representatives...Hopefully someone will see this letter on this blog and bring it to the great Ms. Shakur's attention because I am still very much interested in doing the album cover art for 2Pac's 'final' C.D.


Dear Ms. Afeni Shakur,
It is such an honor and pleasure to finally be able to touch bases with you. I have been a fan of your son ever since I saw him on “Juice” and heard “Brenda’s got a baby”. Your son was truly a “genius” and like so many geniuses he was terribly misunderstood. When I heard he died on Friday the 13th ,1996 I was shocked and outraged. It was like hearing that the President of the United States got assassinated because I knew I would never forget where I was or what I was doing and how I reacted when I heard the tragic news.

Your son’s rapping style (grossly imitated by many simply for money gains) went beyond the hip hop category. It was like hearing the pains, hopes, miseries, preservation, and happiness of a darker race of people articulated through a quick, sharp, and witty mind with the unrelenting passion and restlessness of a well traveled and wise bluesman. To me your son was the closest thing the hip hop generation ever had to a Robert Johnson or a John Lee Hooker, all three are masterful storytellers with commanding presence and superior talent. His simple(not easy!!!) and direct delivery with precise articulation often reminds me of the jazz trumpeter/ creative genius Miles Davis. Both artists are seriously imitated, yet few if any can correctly articulate the fluency, agility, fragility, and nuances in which both men displayed in their respective mediums which expressed their true passion for living and their deep sensitivity for the human experience.
MORE...

Quotes of the Moment

"Every great dream begins with a dreamer. Always remember, you have within you the strength, the patience, and the passion to reach for the stars to change the world."

"If I could have convinced more slaves that they were slaves, I could have freed thousands more."

-Harriet Tubman

Nuttin But Stringz iz Nuttin But Great

Brothers Damien and Toure Escobar of Nuttin But Stringz
Nuttin But Stringz Live @The Canon Center
A Band of Brothers: R2C2H2 Tha Artivist (In green playa shirt and brown pimp hat) With Nuttin But Stringz And The Rapper/Hypeman Extraordinaire Mr. Tony Hayes (In red shirt)

On a light drizzle filled Sunday evening, June 4, 2006, I had a friendly run in with a good friend of mine, the hardworking and beautiful Mrs. Regina Walker of the United Way of the Greater Mid South…I was actually on my way home with a whole lotta stuff including artworks and trumpet in my hands after completing a short yet intense day of exhibiting and attention getting (creatively prostituting myself artistically speaking…Ya know its hard out here for an…Artivist) at the 2006 Sisterhood Showcase…I thought I would retire to the comforts of my home watching the season finales of The Sopranos and Big Love respectively (HBO KNOWS AND CREATES DRAMA BETTER THAN ANYBODY ELSE…SORRY TNT)…HOWEVER, FATE HAD OTHER PLANS FOR ME…Anyways my friend Regina had an extra ticket to the AL JARREAU show which was actually happening next door where the Memphis Cook Convention Center held "The Sisterhood Showcase" at; the Canon Performing Arts Center...The fact that Regina had "Actually" called ten people to try to GIVE AWAY THE TICKET FOR ONE OF THE GREATEST ENTERTAINERS TO EVER GRACE THE EARTH (ONLY THE SECOND ARTIST TO EVER WIN A GRAMMY IN THREE DIFFERENT CATEGORIES) LET ME KNOW THAT IT WAS FATE AND NOT CHANCE (THE IRONIC THING IS THE FACT THAT AN ARTIST FRIEND OF MINE’S MOMS WAS ACTUALLY ASKING ME ALL WEEKEND AT THE SHOWCASE IF I KNEW ANYONE THAT MAY HAVE AN EXTRA TICKET BECAUSE SHE WAS A BIG AL JARREAU FAN!!!)…ANYWAYS AS ALWAYS AL THE CONSUMATE PERFORMER NEVER FAILED TO IMPRESS AND ENTERTAIN… What was surprising was his opening act, "Nuttin But Stringz"whose performance and commanding stage presence definitely put me in the mood and in the spirit of having an authentically GREAT TIME… Basically Nuttin But Stringz is a group CONSISTING OF TWO BROTHERS, Damien and Toure Escobar who are from the NYC and are professional and classically trained musicians (they studied at the prestigious Juilliard School for the Arts)…They have been on highly popular mainstream venues such as the Jay Leno Show, Ellen DeGeneres Show, and Showtime at the Apollo, but I never heard of them before Sunday evening…However, what makes the twosome unique is their ability to blend old school with nu school sensibilities…They used their talents to great effect in combining Hip Hop with Classical European, rock n roll and jazz, bridging a wide demographic of people in the audience all in attendance in the name of music appreciation…From Mozart to JayZ they hit all points in between in letting be known that Like the great God MC Rakim said before "it ain’t where you from but where you at" in understanding your humanity and creatively expressing yourself with that humanity…Nuthin But Stringz isn’t a new phenomenon but an updated version of a celebrated if sometimes obscured and underappreciated tradition of great exceptional young black and gifted musical prodigies which arguably started with the first mainstream Black American music star Blind Tom Bethune…They also in my opinion are the closest thing to being Jean Michel Basquiat in musical terms aesthetically speaking…Also in Nuthing But Stringz’s wonderful act I see ambition and drive which could one day equal or even surpass those of Lt. James Reese Europe,Samuel Coleridge Taylor, Scott Joplin, Will Marion Cook,William Grant Still, and Duke Ellington in that they are creating with their musical talents an unique voicing of the Souls of Black Folks that knows no boundaries to an audience who in my opinion as a whole are still unaware of the full greatness of that unique heritage post-Katrina …The fact that they are so young (late teens around 18 and 19 years old respectively) also adds a certain youthful hipness as well as mainstream hip-popish (Hip Hop and Pop) appeal to their act…The group’s interactions with the audience was also wonderful and very much appreciated …Their hypeman and rapper, Mr. Tony Hayes, played a very instrumental and crowd pleasing role in getting the mostly middle aged crowd "to get low" with it and get lost in the playful interplay between the rapper and Nuthin But Stringz…One of the performances that stand out in my mind was the opening number where you can tell how passionate and focused the talented duo was by looking at the finely combed horse hairs coming apart on Damien Escobar’s violin bow (reminded me of John Coltrane’s frenetic and passionate playing) or the showmanship of his brother Toure's Jimi Hendrix like approach to playing his violin…Some more numbers of note was their song paying homage to Egypt which had a very mystic, nostalgic and exotic quality which stirs echoes of Duke Ellington’s "Caravan" or "Black and Tan Fantasy"…Their version of Luther Vandross’s "Dance With My Father" was also a very successful number which evoked a lot of sentimental emotion from many members in the audience…Nuthin But Stringz was very consistent as far as keeping their energy high and very positive throughout the set…The brothers no matter how serious they took their playing also showed a sense of humor when they did their parody of a love song in which they repeated the refrain ,"I’m a sucker for her"…And just like they started they also ended their set on a high note with the number "A NEW Day"…That song in particular gave the venue a tent revival feel in that the brothers were along with their rapping sidekick Mr. Tony Hayes giving a semi-autobiographical testimonial about how everyone should look forward to getting a second chance or new day to improve or redeem themselves…This proves for me that wisdom don’t come with age, but with trial and error and understanding while remaining positive in spite of it all (Keep Hope Alive)…I got a chance to me NBS and Mr. Tony Hayes after the show…These brothers are very humble and beautiful people…I thoroughly enjoyed talking with them and Mr. Tony Hayes who felled in love with Memphis, in particular the women and Corky’s barbeque but maybe not in that order!!! Right now they are very accessible, but I feel that they won’t be for long because their talent is too unique and daring not to be recognized for what it is: true genius in the making…Like freshly cooked Krispy Kreme Donuts once everybody gets a whiff they are going to be hard to get because they will definitely be in high demand…Hey everybody please don’t sleep on Nuthin But Stringz because these brothers got a lot to offer and should be supported!!! Hopefully one new day soon they will be coming to a venue near you!!! Please visit their official website at http://www.nuttinbutstringz.com/

O. Hell Naw!!!

Did Oprah Misstepped???

Why Oprah’s Lack of Connectiveness with the Hip Hop Generation may cost her in the long run…The Outraged Negro Reports…

When I read about Oprah chastising the rapper Ludacris about his rap lyrics I thought to myself O. Hell Naw!!!The rapper whose guberment name is Christopher Brian Bridges already paid his bad nigger dues when one of White Amerikkka’s Gatekeepers and Pimps Mr. Bill ‘I Want To Get Rowdy In My Manly Female Assistant’s Pants And Wear Her Panties’ O’ Reilly messed up Ludacris’ Pepsi pay day and who ironically endorsed the poster boy for "Why Drugs Are Bad mmm Okay" Mr. Ozzy Osbourne…Anyway being that Ludacris is from A**lanta he should have gotten an endorsement deal with the hometown product, Coca Cola…

Now to have White Amerikkka’s favorite Black Nanny since Nell Carter (R.I.P.) and Aunt ‘Dem Cakes Sho iz Good Wit Al O’ Dat Sirrup’ Jemima go after you is like having hot grits thrown in your face…I am not by any means trying to take away anything from Oprah as a successful business entrepreneur, media darling, cultural icon, and humanitarian, but what I do find fault with is how others perceive her…

Oprah no matter how smart, insightful and well read she may be is a human being whose truthiness or opinions a.k.a shznt are no more factual or rosy smelling than anyone else's…If I was Oprah I would be wondering why White Amerikkka loves me so much (most people who are for Black folks and for justice are usually considered threats to the Amerikkkan Establishment and for you misled fools who say something about Dr. King being White Amerikkka’s friend then I would ask why was he killed???)…

The fact that White Amerikkka can proclaim Oprah to be a Prophet or God and yet still find it controversial that Jesus was a Black man and Mary Magdalene was more than just a private dancer for Jesus should disturb any rational minded individual regardless of how they may feel about Oprah the success story and Amerikkkan Dream…

Ludacris made a great point in stating the obvious which was he came on the show as a cast member to support the award winning film Crash…He did not come on as a rapper to promote a new album, but as an actor or raptor (rapper + actor)…The fact that Oprah would be so condescending to Ludacris when she never chastised Dave ‘Back To Africa' Chappelle and Chris ‘Crack Kills Brain Cells’ Rock for the content of their artistry is pure hippo shittal!!!

Oprah’s show is too pop-culture heavy and not substantive enough to take on real life issues in a sincere and productive way…Like 50 ‘Beaver Teeth’ Cent says her audience is mostly middle aged White women who want to spend their time drugged out on Prozac and falling in love with gay guys they thought were straight (Tom Cruise). The fact that Oprah stated on Ed ‘Kiss Dat A** To Make Dat Cash’ Lover’s Show several weeks ago ( click to listen to Oprah Hip Hop's Interview) that she liked 50 ‘Beaver Teeth’ Cent's "In Da Club" song because of the beat proves to me that Oprah is just a consumer slave like everyone else…She, like most people, blocks out certain things like lyrical content in order to get the so-called instant gratification of hearing an addictive beat…A junkie with money just like Whitney…

Ludacris, 50 Cent or Hip Hop for that matter isn’t the problem, but White Amerikkka and the entertainment industry as a whole is…People must realize that before there was a Bob ‘Pimping Ain’t Easy But It Still Pays The Bills’ Johnson and B.E.T. (Black Excrement Typhoidvision) that Amerikkka’s entertainment industry was built on racist and sexist stereotypes…

Entertainment in the U.S.A. has always been made for the enjoyment of White folkkks first and foremost…When Black folks were trying to do serious theatre back in the 1820s in New York at the African Grove Theatre, they were shut down because White Amerikkkans didn’t want their niggers and coons doing Shakespeare they just wanted them to shake their asses while chucking spears and dropping it like it hot…This is one of the reasons why the African Grove Theatre alum and brilliant Ira Aldridge left Amerikkka for Europe…By doing so he eventually became known as one of the greatest Shakespearean actors of all time…T.D. Rice, the Father of the Amerikkkan minstrel caricature (most notably Jim Crow), and Stephen Foster, the Father of the Amerikkkan minstrel song, were White Cultural Pimps who created the trend of aping Black folks and their culture (Think Elvis, Eminem)…

Until Black folks have an actual economic and political ownership of so called Black Amerikkkan culture then Oprah’s approach with Ludacris and others will have very little effect…What Oprah really needs to do if she wants to change the self indulgent and self destructive nature of the Amerikkkan entertainment industry in particular and our society in general is to present shows that really tell a true perspective not truthiness assumption about the Amerikkkan entertainment industry…Although that would probably be career suicide (that what normally happens when you upset the sensibilities of White Amerikkka), at least the people can have the actual chance to decide to continue to live as mindless a**holes or better informed and conscious human beings…

Yours Truly Even If You Think I Wont Be Around For Much Longer… The Outraged Negro

*Important: The views of the The Outraged Negro doesn't represent the views of all those affiliated with W.E. A.L.L. B.E.*To reach The Outraged Negro please e-mail him at outragedandnegro@gmail.com or leave a comment on this post…Thanks!!!

Why Dr. W.E.B. DuBois Will Always Be The Greatest Of All Time (G.O.A.T.)

Regardless of the acclaim, entitlement and awe that the members of the Black Liberal Intellectualized Suicide Society (B.L.I.S.S.) movement receive for their sometimes deserved and sometimes overrated accomplishments and intellectual prowess, these scholars will never measure up to the sacrifices, achievements and legend of one Dr. William Edward Burghardt DuBois...Dr. DuBois is the Babe Ruth , Duke Ellington and William Shakespeare of Black Intellectuals...He set the bar for what can be done when one uses one's brain, god given talents, and passion to effect change in a world based on plantation capitalism and White supremacy...Dr. DuBois was the first Black person to receive a Ph. D from Harvard University...He is also the Father of American Sociology having established the first sociology department in Amerikkka at Black Atlanta University at the turn of the 20th Century...He was a scholar activist of the highest order, having organized the 1905 Niagara Movement in protest of Amerikkkan apartheid and some aspects of Booker T. Washington's philosophy regarding accommodation concerning the racist treatments of Blacks by Whites...He was a founding member of the N.A.A.C.P., the oldest civil rights organization in the U.S.A....He also was the editor and founder of the Crisis Magazine the official literary voice of the N.A.A.C.P. which gave him a chance to articulate the policies and philosophy of the N.A.A.C.P. as well as offer his own unique perspectives and commentaries on the pressing issues of the day and to showcase talented African Americans (for example Dr. DuBois was the first person to discover and publish a young literary giant in the making by the name of Langston Hughes...A lifelong Pan Africanist he helped to organized the very influential Pan African Congress Conferences of the first part of the 20th Century where he not only served as inspiration and moderator, but also mentored the young leaders of the Nu Independent Africa Movement including Kwame Nkrumah, Sekou Toure, and Jomo Kenyatta...In spite of the fact that Dr. DuBois did all of the above and even found time to authored 21 books, write several plays and poetry he still never received his props from White mainstream Amerikkka and was also under appreciated in many respects by Black people as well...Although he graduated with honors from Harvard University he was never hired as a full time tenured professor at any of the major Elitist White Academic Institutions like Dr. Cornell West who enjoyed and enjoys celebrated professorships at both Harvard University and Princeton University respectively...Dr. West and many other B.L.I.S.S. members also continue to enjoy numerous opportunities to do lecture tours and command huge pay days from the same Elitist White Academic Institutions that saw the multi-talented Dr. DuBois as just an uppity and agitating high yellow nigger...Dr. DuBois,who was a proud Fisk University graduate, spent his early career laboring at historically Black Wilberforce University and Atlanta University respectively basically building an academic program without much help or fanfare from scratch and limited resources...Although no one can control or determine one's own birth place or birth time, I still can not logically state or believe that Dr. West or any of the contemporary Black scholars can be considered in the same league as Dr. DuBois because Dr. DuBois still in terms of output and influence used his head better than most by a fairly wide margin (no homo)...Dr. DuBois in most of his 95 years on planet earth was considered a threat because he not only challenged both the philosophies of the Amerikkkan and World Imperial systems by writing brilliantly researched and executed academic papers and books which have for the most part stood the test of time and rightfully belong in the canon of only the most brilliant and thought provoking works of some of the greatest scholars that ever lived both outside and inside The African Diaspora, but ALSO BECAUSE HE HAD THE TESTICULAR FORTITUDE (BALLS) TO TAKE THIS SOPHISTICATED LEARNING AND TIMELESS MESSAGE OUT OF THE SAFE CONFINES OF THE CLASSROOM AND PRACTICE IT IN THE REAL WORLD BY EMPOWERING PEOPLE FROM ALL WALKS OF LIFE THROUGH HIS INTELLECTUAL GIFTS AND GRASSROOTS ORGANIZATIONAL SKILLS...By contrast Dr. West and many of his B.L.I.S.S. contemporaries are only considered threats when fighting or vying with each other for tenured positions in Elite White Academic Institutions or for air time with Laffy Taffy Smiley Face (Tavis Smiley), the Short Attention-Span Network (C-Span) and Bill 'I'm In Love With A Stripper/Hooker' Maher.
Yours Truly Even If You Rather Want To Have The Bird Flu Instead,
The Outraged Negro
*Important: The views of the The Outraged Negro doesn't represent the those who are affiliated with W.E. A.L.L. B.E.*
To reach The Outraged Negro please e-mail him at outragedandnegro@gmail.com or leave a comment on this post...Thanks!!!

Outraged Negro says MLB Wrong For Not Celebrating Barry's Homerun Milestone

Barry Good Even When THE MLB ISN'T!!!

On Sunday May 28, 2006, Barry Lamar Bonds became just the second documented ball player to surpass the mighty White Giant known as the Babe Ruth in the most macho of sports categories: career homerun totals…However quiet as it is kept Barry did break a baseball record Sunday and it was significant… 
 

When the specially hologrammed marked baseball left the fat part of Barry's Black bat for a 445ft journey into the bleachers and the annals of sports history it cemented Barry Lamar Bonds as the most prolific left-handed homerun hitter of all time in Major League Baseball History…Up until Barry crushed the ball, Babe Ruth was the record holder for most homeruns by a left-handed hitter so you see Barry not only accomplished a major milestone but also broke and set an actual MLB record!!!
 

All this pigeon crapping and media downplaying by Bud Selig and his lackeys is pure posing because he's too smart not to know…What this actually shows is the cowardice of Major League Baseball to not stand behind one of its most talented and bankable if highly controversial stars because of the guilty cloud put upon Barry by many in the mainstream media regardless of the fact that the man has yet to fail a drug test and is probably tested more than any one athlete except perhaps the great champion bicyclist Lance Armstrong…Public scrutiny and perception which is shaped by the narrowmindedness and factless speculation of the mainstream media is what it is and is the price one pays for seeking fame and fortune in a tabloid addicted society… 
 

Although Bud and the Major League Baseball establishment have already shown how they felt about Barry and his accomplishment it is great to know that many people involved in the game feel otherwise…The great St. Louis Cardinals slugger Albert Pujols, who is on pace to break Barry Bonds' single season homerun mark of 73 homeruns, publicly came out in support of Bonds and offered the beleagured player nothing but praise and respect and chided the media for not being fair in their assessment and portrayal of Bonds and his achievements… 
 

Another note is Barry's next record to break isn't Hammerin' Hank's career total of 755 homeruns, but the underappreciated Hammerin' Hank's National League homerun record of 733 homeruns…Barry who's has played all 21 years of his spectacular career in the National League needs just 19 homers to pass this record/milestone and will probably do that this year…And oh by the way Babe Ruth still holds the American League record for most homers hit by a player at you guess it 714...No matter what ladies and gentlemen that Fat Bastard (R.I.P.) like Freddie Kreuger and Jason Voorhies refuses to die!!!
 

Yours Truly Even If Maury Povich's Birth Test States Otherwise,
 

The Outraged Negro


*Important: The views of the The Outraged Negro doesn't represent the views of all those affliated with W.E. A.L.L. B.E.*


To reach The Outraged Negro please e-mail him at outragedandnegro@gmail.com or leave a comment on this post…Thanks!!!

Babe Ruth and White Lies...

The Bambino In All Of His Hyperganda Glory

Baseball has too many damn records for its own damn good…One reason for all these records is to ensure that the Babe not Hank Aaron or any other damn darkey too talented and ambitious for his own good (a la Barry Bonds or Bad Nigger) continues to be recognized as The King of Swing and Sultan of Swat…This hyperganda (propaganda run amuck) isn't new in White Amerikkka…

In an effort to make their heroes seem bigger and grander than what they really are White Amerikkka always seek to replace truth with truthiness or lies that contain truth on crack…

For example, when history books tell you Thomas Jefferson was a farmer, planter, architect and musician who built his Monticello estate in Virginia they never tell you that it was enslaved Afrikans that actually farmed the land, provided the entertainment (music and otherwise) at his society balls, grew the food , designed and built his damn Monticello mansion…Thomas Jefferson also used enslaved Afrikans to break in his bed in the master bedroom (Sally Hemmings)…Thomas Edison did not make the light bulb as we now know and loathe today…Actually Edison's version was a failure until one of his assistants , a talented Black man by the name of Lewis Latimer created the light bulb filament and yes this is the same Lewis Latimer who designed the prototype for Alexander Graham Bell's first telephone that you never hear about because of Amerikkkan History Blackouts…

It has been several days since Memorial day and many people still don't realize that Black folks have played a significant role in every war Amerikkka has gotten itself involved in from 5,000 Black soldiers under the direction of Gen. George Washington to those currently deployed in Afghanistan and Iraq…Blacks have always been among the first to answer the so-called clarion call of freedom and justice for all even though they weren't always extended the same rights and privileges that they unhesitatingly died for and their efforts no matter how much soaked in actual blood, sweat and tears, after their generation has long passed the scene will finally be disgraced by getting the official Blackout on the Amerikkkan History Record…

What does this Amerikkkan History Blackout got to do with Babe Ruth and Major League Baseball history and records one may ask??? Well considering that the Babe Ruth the actual legend and not the man is the hyperganda product of White sportswriters from the 1920s and 1930s and is continually being perpetuated by their misguided offspring (Tim Kurkjian of ESPN and the baby faced Jeff Passan of Yahoo Sports! Comes to mind) and that White Amerrikkka have also been known and prone on the regular to over mythologizing, re-writing, and romanticizing its dark, genocidal, sinister and tragic past all in the name of White guilt (liberalism) and shame, then one can see the answer clearly which is of course A LOT!!!

culture and to the The fact that the candy bar known as Baby Ruth wasn't named for the cherub faced slugger but for Pres. Grover Cleveland's daughter, Ruth, is a fact that have fell victim to the hyperganda Amerikkkan History Blackout…When Babe Ruth was committing athletic acts of "superhuman ability" (which in baseball circles athletic acts of exceptional brilliance are now called Ruthian) the fact that he was doing it in much smaller ballparks and against no people of color did not or does not even now lead many people to question the legitimacy of the homerun record in the first place…The fact that people can call without thought or hesitancy Barry Bonds a cheater who never failed a drug test and hasn't broken any laws is very hypocritical and lacks serious analysis…Even if he did took steroids it still doesn't matter because baseball did not have any laws against the taking of steroids on the books during the time he allegedly would have committed the crime…But the Babe on the other hand had something far better than steroids, hotdogs, beer and young fast girls in his favor, he had SEGREGATION…Segregation meant that Blacks and Whites couldn't play together…Although the Black and Whites both had their own respective leagues with their fair share of stars, the White Amerikkkan press only paid close attention to the White League while the Black press covered the Black League...
However, the White press had more access and influence among the Amerikkkan White Mainstream meaning that while talented White baseball players like Babe Ruth, Ty Cobb and Tris Speaker became household names in many Amerikkkan households, the Black ball players would have to settle to be only known and appreciated among their own people…

Babe Ruth hit all of his 714 literally against and among friends and family while Bonds could be considered the U.N. Secretary General or Kofi Anan of homerun hitters because he has hit his homers off of more pitchers from all nationalities (currently 421 and counting) than anyone in major league baseball history…

The fact that Babe Ruth played in a left-handed hitter friendly park such as Yankee Stadium also helped to add to his homerun total…However, in comparison Barry Bonds homerun totals become even more amazing when you look at the fact that he has hit many of his milestone homeruns since the beginning of the millennium in one of the most cavernous and most difficult parks to hit a homer in especially for left handers, the SF Giants SBC Park in San Francisco…

Also many people forget or want not to acknowledge the fact that if Blacks and other players of color were allowed to play with the Whites that Babe Ruth's presence in baseball lore and history could easily have been an non-issue or even non-existent…Think about it many people would probably be talking about the exploits of a Josh Gibson the first ballplayer to hit one out of Yankee stadium and who allegedly had over 800 plus homeruns in his grossly underappreciated career and who also hit close to 80 homeruns in one season!!!

It could be stated the reason why it took the Red Sox so long to win a championship wasn't necessarily the curse of the Babe or Bambino but the curse of White Amerikkkan Racism…The fact that the Red Sox had a chance to not only sign the great Willie Mays, but also the great Hank Aaron (both of whom were the product of the Black or Negro Leagues) and yet passed on it because the owner at the time, Tom Yawkey was a racist and white supremacist shows how much racism and hate can cloud up a person's good judgement especially when it comes to building championship caliber teams…

Although I have spent time criticizing and rightfully so the achievements of one George Herman Ruth and White Amerikkka's hyperganda's interpretations of them, I must say that I am quite impressed with the man more so in many respects than his "tainted" records…The fact that he was public friendly is evident in that many ways a Babe Ruth autograph is easier to find even after some 58 years after passing than some alive and currently active professional athletes!!!

One thing in particular has always stood out in my mind about Babe and seems to imply something that his numerous major league records don't: HIS FAIRNESS AND UNBIASED APPRECIATION FOR TRUE TALENT NO MATTER THE PERSON'S COLOR!!! A reporter once asked the Babe who was the greatest ballplayer he's ever seen…The Babe interested in the meaning of the question asked for clarification on the question whether it meant the greatest White or Black player etc.,…The anxious reporter clarified the statement by saying the greatest ball player period and so the Babe told him that it was a Black man by the name of Henry 'Pop' Lloyd…There may be hope for White Amerikkka yet!!!
Yours Truly Even If You Think That A Fat Man Can Actually Be The Greatest Athlete Of All Time,

The Outraged Negro

*Important: The views of the The Outraged Negro doesn't represent the views of all those affliated with W.E. A.L.L. B.E.*

To reach The Outraged Negro please e-mail him at outragedandnegro@gmail.com or leave a comment on this post…Thanks!!!