This is America…. A gang of white men half masked walking in broad daylight with police escorts, all coordinated in their uniformed outfits dressed in khaki pants and caps, blue jackets, and white face masks, stormed the Lincoln Memorial at the National Mall in Washington DC this past Saturday.  

These withe nationalists were reportedly members and affiliates of the “Patriot Front” and according to reliable sources including The Southern Poverty Law Center, the “Patriot Front” is a mostly young group of white nationalists that that emerged out of the Charlottesville Virginia “Unite The Right” white extremist rally which turned deadly. At that rally, a white supremacist and neo-Nazi activist, James Fields, drove a car into an innocent group of people killing 32-year-old Heather Heyer. Fields was convicted of first-degree murder and sentenced to life in prison in 2018. Then-President Donald Trump failed to fully condemn these efforts and stated that “both sides” were somehow to blame for confrontations and the deadly 2017 incident. He refused to condemn white supremacy and many feel he fueled the tensions and newly inspired racist efforts that remind many of the prior Ku Klux Klan crimes against humanity in America.  

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This Patriot Front organization is apparently a spinoff from “Vanguard America,” another similar hate group involved in that dangerous rally. Unlike Vanguard America, the Patriot Front group reportedly focuses on well-produced “theatrics” and white nationalist rhetoric to enlist and engage members to their organization across the country.
  
From the videos captured this past Saturday, you could see and hear members saying all kinds of dangerous things along with the rally such as: 

“Reclaim America!” 
“Live, Liberty & Victory!” 
“Get out the country if you don’t like it.” 

As we learn more about these details, we continue to be challenged on why the government allows these aggressive white groups to assemble and promote their efforts to “reclaim America.” Reclaim it from whom? Reclaim it to do what?  Are large numbers of white folks in their feelings about the diversification of America and people of color exercising their right to vote?  

While there is no evidence this group had a lawful permit for their race stirring stunt, the group was heavily guarded and monitored.  The Metropolitan Police spokesperson said that the “First Amendment demonstration was peaceful with no incidents or arrests.”
As we learn more about these details, we continue to be challenged on why the government allows these aggressive white groups to assemble and promote their efforts to “reclaim America.”  Reclaim it from who?  Reclaim it to do what?  Are large numbers of white folks in their feelings about the diversification of America and people of color exercising their right to vote?  

These actions are taking place during a tense time when national leaders ignore racist and violent comments by legislators, threats made on a Muslim Congresswoman, and almost an entire political party refusing to support The John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act of 2021, which is proposed legislation that would restore and strengthen parts of the Voting Rights Act of 1965, certain portions of which were struck down by United States Supreme Court decisions.  

Indeed, these are indeed times to pay attention and fight these powers of violence and racism.  This is America.

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Beloved rapper/actor/philanthropist DMX passed away last Friday at the tender age of 50.
After a week-long battle in the hospital, family, friends—and the entire hip hop community said goodbye to the New York rapper.

It’s difficult to write about someone that the world is attached to artistically when you know the person’s heart and kindness surpasses their own talent. In 2019, I wrote about my friendship with Dark Man X.  When someone passes, you immediately think of moments, conversations and experiences you’ve shared with them. Anyone who’s met Earl Simmons can relate but if you’ve spent time with him—you definitely have a story or ten.

When I first heard about his passing, these moments came to mind. All before the fame. From the two of us always trekking through Harlem on foot, to driving down 125th while he tells me his plan to take over the world. From him rapping on the street in the back of the Mart 125 to standing next to him in the booth while he laid vocals that would later become classics. Whether we were talking about life, family or hopping out of Harlem cabs, there was never a dull moment with D. 

I had to leave social media for a few days because the images and stories brought me to tears. Swizz broke it down the best. DMX always knew he was troubled but put his troubles aside to help everyone else. He would give you the shirt off his back and I witnessed this many times. He also helped me in many ways and vice versa. He respected my ear and knowledge of hip hop and that’s where we bonded. One day he came to my job (with his dog) rushing me to finish up in front of my customer. 

“Yo!” He shouted loudly. “Meet me in the back when you’re done.” I always said 10-minutes but knew it would be longer. He waited impatiently checking in every 5-minutes until I was done 30-minutes later. “Why you always yelling in front of my customers?” I asked him annoyed. 
“Because you always say that 10 minute s*** and I know you be lying.”

We laughed and walked all the way to Madison and 127th street. “I know a spot over here I’m gonna put you on to…” he said as I followed him and his dog. We walked down the stairs to the basement of a dilapidated building as he knocked on a hole in the wall.  “You got the lambsbread?” At that moment a cardboard paper slid out with 8 different bags of marijuana on it.  A menu of some sorts. “Let me get 2 lambsbread and 2 chocolate tye.” He handed the menu back with some cash. Four bags popped out the wall and we were out. 

“I gotta go to the studio in Yonkers, you wanna roll? I gotta meet Grease there.” Dame Grease was a producer from Harlem and one of D’s bestfriends. We often hung out together. Grease became my family too. He would pop into my job on his bike with a bag of trees for me and it would make my day. Quiet, reserved and talented…Grease always made the best darkest and scariest beats. He was my favorite producer and I loved listening to him and D create. I would listen and make suggestions which normally artists don’t like but they both seemed to be curious about what I thought as well.

That night we went to Powerhouse Studios which was still under construction at that time. When we pulled up, rappers Mase and The Lox were there. At that time, Mase and The Lox were already signed to Bad Boy Records and D was working on It’s Dark And Hell Is Hot. I can’t remember how this happened but someone turned a beat on and the most incredible rhyming session occurred–unrecorded. I had a front seat to what would become the beginning of an era. Murder Mase was on his hardcore Harlem tip and The Lox were on their street rhymes— but D went hard. He wouldn’t stop rhyming. Bars on bars on bars and he kept going. The intensity, the passion, the hunger and the talent…it was undeniable. I sat there in a cloud of weed smoke and I knew that the hip hop game would never be the same.

Even at the height of his career he peeped me standing on the side of the stage.

“Courtney! What up?!”….

We won’t ever forget you Dark Man X…thank you for all you have given us.

The post Remembering DMX: A Personal Story appeared first on The Source.

Congress finally certified the votes of the Electoral College for the 2020 election of the United States President and Vice President. As U.S. Representatives and Senators worked to certify the final votes, anti-democratic racist mobs overwhelmed U.S. Capitol Police and took over the Capitol. Carrying Confederate and Trump flags, this mostly white group broke into Congressional offices, ransacking them and leaving threatening notes. This ultimately triggered a citywide curfew and an activation of the National Guard.

The mob wanted to overturn the election results and ensure Trump remains president but that’s not how democracy works. Democracy, by definition, is the right of the people to elect their representatives, not the ability of some to violently force their will on the majority. Despite a global health pandemic and blatant attempts to suppress the voice of Black and Brown voters, millions of Americans showed up and voted. The voters have spoken, and their will must be respected. 

The violent and baseless rejection of the 2020 presidential election results is the direct manifestation of continued commitment to white supremacy and aligned national leadership in the White House and Congress, that refuses to respect the will of the people and knowingly bolsters false and dangerous narratives for political and personal gain. In a desperate attempt to hold onto power, these forces are trying to undermine the will of millions of voters, especially the growing majority of people of color.

The mobs’ actions were nothing short of an attempt to overthrow our government, which these same elected officials took an oath to defend and protect. It was also a clear reminder that our nation was built upon racial violence. When Black and Brown voters have successfully exercised power at the polls, a fierce whitelash has always attempted to silence them. 

But we shall not retreat. We must continue to work for our freedom and build an America that works for all of us. Our nation must stand firm in protecting the fundamental right to vote and ensure our nation maintains a just democracy. 

Words by: Judith Browne Dianis, Executive Director of Advancement Project National Office

The post Op-Ed: Whitelash Will Not Silence Us appeared first on The Source.

by: Kyle Mays

November is Native American Heritage Month. But how many people knew that? Better yet, how many people know that Native Americans—the Indigenous people of this land—are still here? During this month, it presents an opportunity for all of us to reflect on a history of genocide, and to consider what we collectively owe to the people upon whose land we all currently live. This month is not just about Thanksgiving, but remembering the struggle of Native Americans who fought valiantly for a future, and it is our job to make sure we remember. According to the 2010 U.S. Census, there are over 5 million Native Americans in the United States. There are 574 federally recognized tribal nations. They are sovereign nations. Their sovereignty pre-existed U.S. colonization and makes them a distinct group from other racial and ethnic groups in the U.S.  

What does sovereignty mean? In short, because tribal nations have a treaty relationship with the U.S., they have their own laws, they determine who is a citizen, and many nations, have their own land, called a reservation. They are U.S. citizens, but also citizens of their nation. And no, not every tribe earns casino money nor does every Native person receive scholarships for university. And just because you have an (alleged?) Native ancestor from the distant past based on your DNA test, that does not mean you’re Indigenous. It’s not only about what you claim but who claims you. Still, one of the best representations of Native sovereignty is Native American Hip Hop (NAHH). 

NAAH remains one of the longstanding underground Hip Hop scenes that many still have not heard of. What makes their version of Hip Hop unique? They rap about sovereignty, settler colonialism, the daily struggles of living on reservations and in cities, in addition to having fun. According to historian Roxanne Dunbar-Ortiz, settler colonialism is the land theft and genocide that the U.S. government committed against Native people. But they are still here. Native Hip Hop has all of the elements of Hip Hop culture in general. Artists produce knowledge, rap, breakdance, deejay, and also produce graffiti and other forms of visual art. They also have what I call Indigenous Hip Hop Kinship. This kinship is a set of relationships between Native artists, rooted in their specific geographical location, their common experience as colonized people, as well as their connections to tribal nations and clans. I would add two more elements to Native Hip Hop, and that is sovereignty and fashion with a few differences. 

Native artists rock Native bling. Native bling is the combination of a beaded medallion, turquoise jewelry, and earrings that are usually worn at powwows. Instead, artists use them in their Hip Hop performances. They not only represent Hip Hop culture in general but let their audiences know that they are sovereign people, with similar and unique struggles on the rez and in the city. However, an accurate representation of what it means to be Native Americans has not always existed in Hip Hop. 

From the foundations of Hip Hop, Native stereotypes have been a consistent theme. From the Afrika Bambaataa and Soul Sonic Force’s “Planet Rock” music video to André 3000’s performance at the 2004 Grammys to rap trio Migos use of stereotypes and tropes in their video, “T-shirt”, artists have used Native stereotypes. It is not the fault of Black and Latinx artists, although they were complicity. They learned from Europeans who created what historian Philip Deloria calls ‘playing Indian.’ It is a form of cultural appropriation where a non-Native person dresses in costumes or assume Native people act a certain way because of what they have learned from popular culture. For example, not all tribes wear headdresses. Not all tribal nations live on reservations, in fact, the majority live in cities. Hip Hop Nation has done a great deal to produce protest songs for the Black freedom struggle, but they have a lot more to do to stop engaging in Indian play, among other things.  

In this context, Native Hip Hop artists struggle with a double-burden: produce ‘authentic’ Native expressive culture for themselves and their community and also deal with the ever-present Native stereotypes. Given this burden, many artists can sacrifice creative expression for trying to challenge, critique, and disrupt tropes about who they are. Nevertheless, NAAH is diverse, wide-ranging, and covers the endless ground, from the Rez to the hood. Above all, as a representation of what I call NdN Popular culture, the expression of Native cultures and histories, through music, performance art, writing, and aesthetics. NAAH allows Native people to tell their stories, show that they are not a costume, and remind people that, in spite of genocide and continued oppression, they will continue to thrive and live in a good way. 

They produce music that is varied, from amusing and uplifting, to critique and protest. 

For example, the track, “Boujee Natives,” by the Snotty Nose Rez Kids, is a fun-filled, hyper consumptive video that shows Natives drinking champagne, wearing expensive Native bling, and eating oysters and shrimp. In its exuberant indulgence, a reservation version of the Great Gatsby, the Snotty Nose Rez Kids are able to demonstrate that Native Americans aren’t just stoic people who suffer under the weight of colonization. Instead, they display the spectacle of bourgeoise Natives millennials. Gender is also an important part of NAAH culture. 

Native women contribute significantly to NAAH. In the context of the ongoing issue of Missing and Murdered Indigenous women, an salute to Native women’s joy is essential. In a celebration of Native American women, Hip Hop feminists Eekwol and T-Rhyme’s, track, “For Women, By Women,” pays tribute to the vital role that Native women across generations perform in Native communities. Other artists, such as Pooky G, in, “5^Th Chamber,” tells the tale of a young Native woman who struggles to grow up in urban poverty, and yet overcomes it, becoming a strong Native feminist ready to take on the world. Native artists like Savage Fam and Alas in the track, “Walking with the Dead,” reminds us that Native suffering is rooted in colonization and that Native people can never freedom can never exist on stolen lands. These stories are important not only for Native youth but also for non-Native peoples, letting them know that they are still here. 

Native people across urban contexts illustrate the importance of connecting and working with to make sure that Black Lives Matter. For example, in the track Pay 2 Be Poisoned,” SouFy, who grew up in southwest Detroit, produced important music centered on the ongoing Flint Water Crisis, and the continued assault on poor and working-class populations in Detroit and beyond. 

There are other Native American Hip Hop artists from Canada to the U.S. that everyone should check out. As we celebrate Native American Heritage Month, make sure you keep this in mind: that we all live on occupied Indigenous land and consider what we can collectively do to make sure that Black Lives Matter on stolen Indigenous land! The Native American spirit of struggle from 1492 until the present should inspire us to continue the battle for social transformation. It is through NAAH that Native people show that they are still here, fighting for recognition, in Hip Hop, and in the world. 

Kyle T. Mays, Ph.D., is an Assistant Professor in the Department of African American Studies, American Indian Studies, and History at UCLA. He is the author of Hip Hop Beats, Indigenous Rhymes: Modernity and Hip Hop in Indigenous North America (SUNY Press, 2018) and has a forthcoming book titled, An Afro-Indigenous History of the United States (Beacon Press, forthcoming, November 2021), which is a part of their award-winning ReVisioning American History series.

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by Kyle T. Mays, Ph.D.

In the wake of the election of president-elect Joe Biden and the incoming Vice President, Kamala Harris, who will be the first Black and Southeast Asian woman, millions of people were happy that President Donald Trump will no longer be in the White House. People partied in the streets. Although we should be ecstatic, we still have work to do.

People can be joyful in this moment of important change, but we should proceed cautiously. Black male Hip Hop artists like Lil Wayne, Ice Cube, and 50 Cent aligned themselves publicly with Trump. It was a huge mistake on their part. It didn’t matter, because Biden won the electoral college, and earned the most votes ever, at more than 75 million. Yet, Trump earned the second-most ever, at nearly 71 million. Some Republicans voted for Biden but did not vote Democratic in state elections.

We can argue all we want about the nuances of who voted for him and why, but to me, it is clear: Donald Trump was an outward white supremacist in office, and voting for him because of “conservative values” won’t cut it.  This is not good for the 2024 election. We still have work to do. After all, unless Trump is charged with criminal charges, he could run again and could get just about the same number of votes. The Hip Hop community can play an important role.

Hip Hop Nation has always been political. From its inception, rappers and taggers used their voice and visual expressions to tell stories about the condition of poor, working-class Black and Latinx communities. Before Hip Hop engaged in mainstream politics, they were in the streets placing their tattered ballots on the walls of dilapidated New York City buildings and daring society to push them to the edge. Hip Hop’s elements aren’t just cultural production. Drawing on a historical blueprint laid out by organizers like Fannie Lou Hamer and the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee, parts of Hip Hop Nation has been deeply committed to community organizing. They have encouraged young people to vote but also to be involved in their communities every day, not just every four years.

The Hip Hop community, especially at the grassroots level, has a lot of work to do over the next several years to avoid a letdown. We can’t rely on the voices of Hip-Hop billionaires and millionaires who may not represent the interests of those they claim to represent. For almost twenty years the Hip Hop community has sought to engage young people in voting with the Vote or Die campaign, Rock the Vote, and Respect My Vote campaigns. Those have been important in encouraging young people to vote. However, we don’t need to create a new political party to “represent” Black people. A study of the 1972 Black Political Convention held in Gary, Indiana would reveal a lot about how diverse Black politics truly are. Black youth are engaged in politics on the ground, and one of the best ways to help is to donate money and other resources to the causes that they actually want.

We must persist in our struggle for our freedom. There are grassroots organizations at the local level that have continued the work of social change. Many organizations continue the struggle to make Black Lives Matter every day. Assata’s Daughters, based in Chicago, is a Black woman, femme, and gender non-conforming group that continues the work of Black liberation, inspired by the activism of Assata Shakur. Shakur has been in exile in Cuba for decades, remains on the FBI’s Most Wanted list, and is the godmother of the late, Tupac Shakur. Other groups include the Aadizookaan, a Black and Indigenous artistic collective in Detroit. They combine Hip Hop culture and Indigenous storytelling techniques to encourage young people to decolonize their neighborhoods and continue the work of making sure that Black and Indigenous Lives matter in Detroit and beyond. Another organization is 1Hood, led by rapper Jasiri X, who educate young people through creative arts. There are hundreds of organizations that could use more resources to do the work in their local communities.

Hip Hop royalty could, as some are likely already doing, donate money and resources to these types of grassroots organizations. They can de-platform their brands and uplift those groups who really need the assistance. But the question, of course, is who is in their ear?

In some ways, it doesn’t matter what the elites in our communities do. As long as those on the ground continue to struggle, we will get our freedom. Voting is important, but without constant on the ground struggle, political education, and working against the forces that impact us, like police brutality and extreme poverty, the electing of Biden and Harris won’t matter. We still have work to do.

Kyle T. Mays, Ph.D., is an Assistant Professor of African American Studies, American Indian Studies, and History at UCLA. He is the author of Hip Hop Beats, Indigenous Rhymes: Modernity and Hip Hop in Indigenous North America (SUNY Press, 2018) and is finishing up a book titled, An Afro-Indigenous History of the United States (Beacon Press, forthcoming, November 2021)

The post [Op-Ed] Hip Hop Democracy and the Future of Our Freedom appeared first on The Source.

First it was Kanye, then 50 Cent and now Lil Wayne standing beside arguably— one of the most controversial presidents of our lifetime.

At this very moment, the United States is struggling to find compassion. Today is the day to vote for the things that really made America great. The United States is in desperate need to restore humility, strength, togetherness, and compassion. We’ve witnessed a global pandemic that will go down in history while the president told us it ‘would be gone by Easter’.
Despite the social injustices we’ve witnessed, the police brutality, the insensitive remarks and treatment towards kids of immigrants, not once did we feel any sincerity from president Donald Trump.

As a black woman who witnessed the growth of each of these artists, it was confusing to see these unofficial endorsements. Even after each said artists (excluding Wayne) tried to clear up this seemingly misinterpreted representation, the damage had already been done. Women have stood on the front line fighting for these same injustices. We have marched for our men who were treated unfairly while secretly desiring that same attention. Former President Barack Obama has shown us that it is possible for a man to run the country, raise children, date his wife and be an upstanding citizen who’s sincerity would affect an entire generation.

We stood by Kanye when he announced he was depressed and had liposuction and resurfaced with the red MAGA hat. “He’s still mourning his mom….”

We stood by 50 Cent when he dated Chelsea Handler and made those G-Unit t-shirts with the bra-straps. “He’s changing his image…”

We stood by Lil Wayne when he drank syrup, signed a bogus contract and said ‘Black Lives Matter’ has nothing to do with him… “He didn’t understand the contract…”

Now we want our men to stand up for us and go vote. Vote for Sandra Bland, Breonna Taylor, Kathryn Johnston, Korryn Gaines, Atatiana “Tay” Jefferson, Tanisha Anderson, Charleena Lyles, Natasha McKenna, Kyam Livingston, and the countless other black women tragically murdered by police while no convictions were made.

During his campaign for former vice-president Joe Biden, Obama reminded us of what this country was capable of. We can do the right thing. There is more at stake than taxes for millionaires. We have to prepare the future for our children who deserve the best. Joe Biden has worked daily with one of our most loved presidents and he is focused on the people. Obama posted to his Instagram.

@JoeBiden knows that the key to a strong economy isn’t cutting taxes for billionaires; it’s by lifting the prospects of working Americans. He’s got a plan to create ten million good clean energy jobs, fight climate change, and secure environmental justice. Let’s elect a leader who sees this moment not as a chance to get back to where we were, but to finally make long-overdue changes so that our economy actually makes life a little easier for everybody.

Today is the day. Vote for our women, our men, our kids, our ancestors who couldn’t and most importantly…our future.

Let’s go!

The post First Kanye, 50 Cent And Now Lil Wayne: We Need Our Men Today appeared first on The Source.

By Nkechi Taifa, Esq.

We cannot understand the current moment without viewing it with a historical lens. After the death of Justice Thurgood Marshall, there was a gaping hole in the U.S. Supreme Court. The court lost a defender of justice, and African Americans and people of color lost a champion for civil rights. History seems destined to repeat itself: Just as conservative Clarence Thomas replaced civil rights icon Thurgood Marshall on the Supreme Court, Amy Coney Barrett – a judge who once called herself a handmaid – is likely to replace Ruth Bader Ginsburg, a women’s rights icon. As an aside, it is hard for me to forget the frightening images of the haunting dystopian world depicted in “The Handmaid’s Tale.” It is even more evident that just as all “skin folk ain’t kinfolk,” it’s “all women folk ain’t feminist folk.”

If history has taught us anything, it is that progress is not eternal; it must be defended even after it has been wrought. Marshall’s ascension to the Supreme Court was no guarantee that the court would forever be home to persons of his social justice beliefs. His place on the high court was not an automatic welcome mat ensuring that racially conscious Black people would follow suit. Of course, we learned this lesson during Reconstruction. The few gains Black people experienced during that era were not etched in stone. And now – over 150 years later – we are still, in many instances, in the fight for our lives.

As we assess the current environment with its incessant threats to human and civil rights, it is critical we understand the history from which we sprang. We must be familiar with the movements that give us our current standing. We must thoroughly reject the hollow appearances of progress and demand sweeping change.

For instance, white supremacy has always relied on the facade of niceness. But veiled pleasantries often hide abhorrent truths. Despite Coney Barrett’s genteel demeanor during the rushed nomination process, the parading of her large and diverse family, and the pleasant things said about her, the watchdog group Accountable.US has accused Coney Barrett of “unconscionable cruelty.” She was part of a three-person district court that reversed a decision that awarded a pregnant teen $6.7 million dollars after a prison guard in Milwaukee County repeatedly raped her. The party that is anti-reproductive rights, anti-women’s empowerment, and impotent on gender inequities would never nominate a woman committed to said rights. Rather, it will select candidates with the veneer of womanhood but who are devoted to reversing progressive landmark rulings. The party will select someone who appears to have the capacity to be fair but who is vested in the preservation of white supremacy.

Coney Barrett’s affiliation with a group that called its women “handmaids” is particularly telling. I know from personal experience that women in general and Black women, in particular, must negotiate every aspect of their professional careers – determining when to raise their voices, when to go along to get along and when to push back. That Coney Barrett belonged to a group where women were groomed and expected to have no voice other than that prescribed by men is telling. If nothing more, it should inform our view of how she may rule on the bench. It should also foreshadow acquiescence to a political regime that looks more like fascism than democracy.

And so now, the question before us is whether Coney Barrett is a handmaid or heroine. Is she someone who will advance human rights or reverse the clock on decades of progress? Based on her history, we have reason to be cautious.

Nearly 30 years ago, while working for a women’s rights group, I organized one of the first public events to oppose Thomas’ nomination to the U.S. Supreme Court. Although the gathering occurred just under two months before Professor Anita Hill’s sexual harassment allegations publicly surfaced in early October 1991, it was clear to me and others that his civil rights record would be antithetical to that of his predecessor on the court. Indeed, in this current moment, it was strategic to President Trump, as it was yesteryear to President Bush, that Coney Barrett as a woman candidate – just as Thomas as an African American candidate – would appeal to those calling for gender and race representation on the court, despite their controversial stances.

But it is not just women and gender issues at stake. The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights, with the endorsement from over 168 organizations, has outlined a plethora of grave reasons why Coney Barrett’s confirmation to the U.S. Supreme Court must be opposed, including her hostility to health care access; rulings against victims of employment discrimination; and rulings against criminal justice, immigrant justice, and gun safety.

The bottom line: Will a heroine of justice join the highest court in the land, or are we relegated to an accomplished handmaiden who has been trained to march in lockstep with conservative patriarchy? This is the only question that matters, and sadly, we know the answer. Coney Barrett will be harmful to all that we hold dear.

Nkechi Taifa is the convener of the Justice Roundtable and author of “Black Power, Black Lawyer: My Audacious Quest for Justice.”

The post Amy Coney Barrett: Handmaid or Heroine | Opinion Editorial appeared first on The Source.

On August 8, 2011 Kanye West and Jay-Z dropped what would become a Grammy nominated joint album called Watch The Throne. The 12-track LP shattered the iTunes one-week sales record selling just under 300,000 copies while highlighting the creativity of Kanye West and the lyricism of Jay-Z.

The album gave us ‘Otis’ and ‘N***as in Paris’ two singles that could widely be considered classics, but there was one record produced by RZA that deserves more attention as we scrutinize what’s happening with Kanye West.

First and foremost, bipolar disorder is what Ye’s wif,e Kim Kardashian-West, says has been causing his outbursts on social media and at public events, but in 2018 Kanye said on different occasions that he was misdiagnosed and instead was sleep deprived. Given the uncertainty on whether or not Ye actually has bipolar disorder, I think Kanye’s bars on ‘New Day’ give a good explanation of where his mindset is today. Let’s breakdown the verse.

“And I’ll never let my son have an ego// he’ll be nice to everyone wherever we go// I mean I might even make him be republican, so everybody know he love white people.”

The track which pre-dates the birth of Kanye’s children is a lyrical message to the future son of the rapper while at the same time addressing potential missteps that he may have taken in his career. Kanye has been very strong in his opinions from his famous “George Bush doesn’t care about black people” line after Hurricane Katrina to his “Beyoncé had the best video of all time,” rant at the MTV Video Music Awards.

Kanye’s “streams of consciousness” as he calls them made him one of the most hated artists in the industry. Kanye undoubtedly does not regret speaking up and his millions of fans will lionize him but the oppositions often screams louder than the supporters.

In his opening line, Kanye wants not for his son to have the ego that repeatedly landed him in hot water especially with White people and to ensure his offspring won’t be viewed as anti-white, he wants his junior to endorse Republican ideals to cater to the Caucasian majority in the United States who West believes did their best to marginalize the artist.

And I’ll never let him leave his college girlfriend// and get caught up with the groupies in the whirlwind// and I’ll never let him ever hit the telethon even if people dying and the world end//

The last two bars hit the hardest as Yeezy directly references the “George Bush doesn’t care about Black people” comment he made during a Hurricane Katrina telethon in 2005. Kanye’s off script outburst along side comedic actor Mike Meyers was one of his earliest “Kanye-isms” to go viral.

The power behind Kanye calling out President George W. Bush Jr. for his poor response to the hurricane that ravaged the 90 percent Black city of New Orleans put the rapper in the center of the political conversation. Black America praised Kanye for speaking his truth. White america didn’t.

In the same way that Fox News Host Laura Ingraham told LeBron James to “shut up and dribble” White america essentially wanted Ye to shut up and rap. To add some context to the timeline, this comment was delivered on live television a week after Kanye’s Sophomore LP Late Registration dropped.

I just want him to have a easy life// not like Yeezy life// Just want him to be someone people like// Don’t want him to be hated all the time, judged// don’t be like ya daddy that’ll never budge//

His whole career Kanye has hardly ever wavered from his position on issues. His most controversial in recent history came when he became advocate on behalf of Donald Trump, wearing the “Make America Great Again” hat and meeting with Trump on different occasions to discuss political concerns.

Kanye railed against liberals for their attempts to manipulate his thinking even going as far as posting text messages he got from close friends like John Legend who asked Yeezy to reconsider his support for the current President. “Don’t be like ya daddy that’ll never budge” is telling Ye’s son to be open to different ideas and actually take in what people of a different opinion are saying.

We’ve seen Kanye attempt to make this adjustment whether it was him admitting he was wrong to storm the stage when Beck won the 2015 Album of The Year Grammy award or the several times in interviews with Charlamagne Tha God or Jimmy Kimmel where Kanye took his time when answering a question rather than blurting out his first thoughts.

And I’ll never let him ever hit a strip club// I learned the hard way that ain’t the way to get love// and I’ll never let his mom move to L.A., knowing she couldn’t take the pressure now we all pray//

Before Kim Kardashian, there was Amber Rose, Kanye’s long time love who formerly was a stripper at Philadelphia’s Sue’s Rendezvous. The relationship dwindled prior to Ye’s classic My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy Album that seems to have detailed their relationship.

Ye has previously said on The Breakfast Club that had Kim been with him when he wanted her there would have never been an Amber Rose. Regardless, Ye and Rose did have a romance that could simply be described as toxic based on the MBDTF record “Blame Game” with John Legend.

Drug abuse, family issues and rough sex are just some of the things Ye addresses regarding their relationship that started in 2008 lasting roughly two years. Kanye looks back at the toxicity of this romance and prays his son never finds this type of love.

The producer turned rapper concludes the verse addressing his late mother Donda West who died in 2007 during cosmetic liposuction and breast reduction surgery. Kanye cites the pressures of the “perfect body” as a potential factor in the loss of his mother; an emotion that Kanye’s son will never experience according to the rapper due to an awareness of the worst case scenario of cosmetic surgery.

This is the one part of the verse that contradicts Ye’s path that ultimately landed him with an A-List Los Angeles celebrity in Kim Kardashian but Ye has avoided overly embracing the L.A. lifestyle doing his best to avoid paparazzi. These days you’re more likely to see Ye staying at his Wyoming ranch than in the city of Angels.

All of these pressures Kanye has felt throughout his career still weigh heavy on his mind and as he sees the struggle to manage all the emotions from bad breakups, battles with the media, societal disdain for being himself and the lasting depression of losing a parent. Ye would never wish these things on his own seed because he knows firsthand what it can cause. The futurist that is Kanye knew this in 2011, but we’re just seeing it now in 2020.

The post This ‘Watch The Throne’ Verse Could Explain What’s Going on With Kanye West appeared first on The Source.

As the protest movement roils on, America’s forced atonement is now targeting its greatest sin: slavery.

A statue of Confederate President Jefferson Davis was torn down in Richmond, Virginia along Monument Avenue on Wednesday night.

The statue of the Confederacy State’s President lies in the former capital of the southern rebellion since June 3rd, 1907. However, it was toppled shortly before 11 p.m., according to reports.

Social media told the tale and as the monument was being towed away, the crowd cheered.

Down the road, about 80 miles (130 kilometers) away, protesters in Portsmouth beheaded and then pulled down four statues that were part of a Confederate monument also on Wednesday.

Prior to that, a statue of Christopher Columbus in Richmond was torn down by protesters. It was set on fire and then submerged into a lake on Tuesday.

According to reports, the Columbus statue was toppled less than two hours after protesters gathered chanting for the statue’s removal.

Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam last week ordered the removal of an iconic statue of Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee. It was a mere four blocks away from where the Davis statue stood.

Surface Appeasement or Real Atonement?

With monuments coming down there is a double edged sword effect.

There is the ultimate satiation of removing eyesores of men who profited from murder and human trafficking. However, did these monuments serve as a reminder of the racism that is endemic to the American system?

Many people of color have contended that the statues allowed them hard teachable moments.

In 2017, Sandra Crenshaw, a former Dallas City Council member, teamed up with the Buffalo Soldiers of the American West and Sons of Confederate Veterans to oppose the creation of a task force charged with removing Confederate monuments from the city’s public spaces.

“Some people think by taking a statue down that that’s going to erase racism,” Ms. Crenshaw told CBS Dallas. “It’s misguided.”

There is much merit in that vantage point. When immersed in blackness one can easily forget the mentality of those who are puppeteering the system. Research the wealthy groups that finance the monuments like the Daughters of the American Revolution and local committees.

The spirit of rebellion and chivalry of a forlorn era for white America has always superseded the face that it came on the backs of Americans of color.

Still, the monuments forceable removal was far more jolting them the silence we’ve endured passing these false idols for years lamentably.

Now is the time to really drive home the need for reparations. As Bob Johnson, founder of BET said, ““Now is the time to go big” to keep America from dividing into two separate and unequal societies, Robert Johnson said in a CNBC interview.

Johnson said reparations would send the signal that white Americans acknowledge “damages that are owed” for the unequal playing field created by slavery and the decades since.

The wealth divide and police brutality against people of color are at the heart of protests that erupted across the nation. Let’s use the energy the ancestors is steering us towards, those that stole wealth through enslaving black bodies.

The real atonement will be financial as America has begun a process the people must see all the way through.

The post Jefferson Davis Statue Comes Down in Richmond as America is Forced Into Atonement appeared first on The Source.

This morning, actor Terry Crews was trending on Twitter for all the wrong reasons. The America’s Got Talent host was on Twitter Sunday night.

Apparently, Terry was feeling some type of way with all the solidarity happening with folks of color across the globe. He felt the need to take to Twitter to express an unwanted and guilt-laden perspective.

Upon later explanation by Crews, 51, he was trying to say that if white and black people don’t work together, “bad attitudes and resentments can create a dangerous self-righteousness.”

Following the death of George Floyd on May 25, Crews shared an emotional video to Instagram. There he told his followers that he saw himself in the 46-year-old, who died when former police officer Derek Chauvin put a knee on his neck for eight minutes.

“First of all my heart is broken,” he said the video. “George Floyd looks like me. George Floyd could be me. I could easily, easily be that man on the ground with that police officer’s knee on my neck. That could easily be me.”

Pro-Black Is Not Anti-White

There is a popular misconception that being proud to be Black means that you are anti-white. This is not the case.

However, what that statement reflects is a truly enslaved mentality because you cannot operate with that suspicion unless you are co-opted by white supremacy.

White guilt is defined as the feelings of shame and remorse some white people experience when they recognize the legacy of racism and racial injustice and perceive the ways they have benefited from it.

With his statement, Terry Crews is signaling that he has internalized white guilt for white people even though he is not white himself. All one needs to do is look at the front lines of every protest across the globe and white allies are there.

Allies who see their privilege as an invaluable asset to people of color are appreciated by the protest movement. Whether that involvement stems from guilt is a personal motivation, however, the action is needed and respected.

For Crews to create some mythological vacuum where black people are working in a silo for justice is not even close to reality. How he could justify fearing “black supremacy” when the protests are only initial surface pressure shows he doesn’t understand the true goal: system reform.

Feelings on either side will have to subside to doing what is right and if an ego or two is bruised in the process it is a small fee to pay for justice.

Terry Crews is still caught up in the rapture of Black unity optics in a society still encapsulated in white supremacy. If he wasn’t, he would count the white allies in a sea of black faces instead of lamenting how Black the movement looks and feels.

The post Dear Terry Crews, “Black Supremacy” is Not The By-Product of a Post-White Supremacy Society appeared first on The Source.

The world is finally paying attention to social justice for persons of color.

Worldwide, people are donating their time towards the work of change. However, we are now at a crossroads in the culture.

Hip hop as a culture is always on the front lines of the struggle as its artistic elements are birthed from it. But the culture has been co-opted by persons not of color that do not understand the challenges that birthed it.

That new audience ravenously purchases, streams, and downloads the content globally. Their understanding of the music is mainly surface as it is presented as entertainment.

The narratives are the same: black men who seek to “absolve” themselves of their past criminal actions through music. Women who utilize their natural sexuality and voluptuousness to sell products.

The ghetto report was the definition of hip hop through music, dance, graffiti and more. But if we are on the way to change, will the music permanently reflect the movement and not the negativity of the status quo?

A Necessary News Report?

The commercial rap business is an industry that has an audience teeming with listeners. Those listeners respect lyrics, love a vibe, and seek an escape.

All entertainment allows for an escape from your normalcy and if you do not like your life circumstances, like your job, it provides a release.

However, as the music shifted from the block party scene in the Bronx of the late seventies and eighties so did the subject matter. Drugs flooded the community from South America with the complicity of the U.S. government.

As higher quantities of hard narcotics became available and cheaper derivatives were manufactured for consumption by the poor, the storylines changed.

Communities became ravaged by crack cocaine. People devoid of hope economically began to peddle the toxic substance with regularity. Fathers became incarcerated due to lack of job opportunities. Children grew up fatherless and looked to other traumatized survivors in the community. Some taught those children a wayward outlook on life based on their own traumatic experiences.

From these and more issues plaguing communities of color, the music evolved to reflect their reality. The dope man began to look like a Messiah. The pimp a preacher and the con man a genius.

Anyone that brought home the proverbial bacon earned a reputation as a “boss”. Unfortunately, that was a by any means necessary outlook so how they achieved the funds was of little consequence.

NWA, Wu-Tang Clan, JAY-Z and many more finessed tracks with tales of street life, whether it was their experience or not. The language of the oppressed uses negative terminology like “Nigger” and transforms it into “Nigga”. It transforms a “bitch” into an additional term of endearment as well.

The music reflected the streets and we all enjoyed creatives turning pain into pop culture. It was rap music’s little ironic moment and those who only dreaded stepping into the “hood” could tune in with every album or mixtape release.

The effects were profitable for some but spiritually and mentally disastrous for most. Instead of remembering that the music was fictional or a musical news report, life began to imitate art on many levels.

A Tool For White Supremacy?

As success came, so did the baubles and trinkets. The car names became more flamboyant, the clothes more expensive, and the jewelry outrageous. Some became rich and they took an impoverished mentality with them into global success.

However, it created more turmoil because a false sense of reality was fostered. Now, you aren’t a top creative if you don’t look the part. The audience is so used to posturing that they have forgotten the root goal of hip hop as a healing communication tool.

Now it is just another capitalist commodity to be traded and sold by whoever has the most purchasing power. Brave messages of empowerment have been widely replaced by overtures for retail consideration. Artists act as unofficial pitchmen for luxury brands and lifestyle instead of leaders of thought.

But will this survive now that the world has taken notice of the mistreatment of people of color?

A Closing Salvo

When the protesting is over and the world begins to slowly pick up the pieces, what does the music sound like?

Will it reflect the new reality where all moves are rooted in conscientious thinking? Or, will artists regress and push people back to a space where pacification from luxury material worship is considered self-healing?

African traditions are based in bartering and the exchange of ideas, stories and information are considered valuable.

Hip Hop and rap music are indeed currency and what is counterfeit versus wealth management can be subjective.

However, with the world collectively looking to change the way we approach police brutality, fairness, and systemic racism, we must hold our creatives accountable.

Anyone continuing to perpetuate negative thinking and not advancement should be cancelled. We have all now been raised by the narrative from a place of darkness. Now let’s see how popular these voices are spreading light and action items for the community.

That will be the next true test for the culture.

The post Now That The We Are Focused On Justice And Reform Can That Extend To Rap Music? appeared first on The Source.

The centuries of systemic racism in America that permeates every crevice of society has finally come to a head.

The death of George Floyd in Minneapolis revealed the virtual knee to neck applied to people of color for eons.

However, now that the energy is steered towards justice, the hip hop community has to evaluate its role.

But after all the verses on police brutality is the community taking advantage of a potential carpe diem moment?

Salute The Architects

There are two schools of hip hop: true school and new school. Within the two categories lie a generation and cultural gap.

The new school has rapped extensively about their penchant for luxury and in many instances, has given a soundtrack for an optimistic post-racial world. With the exception of major artists like Kendrick Lamar, J. Cole, Joyner Lucas, and the like, the others of the generation generally stayed away from racial issues.

They chose to expose mental illness and drug abuse issues affecting their segment of the community.

However, socially conscious are the bedrock of the true school generation. Public Enemy speaking raw truth to power with a militant’s sense of urgency. The Native Tongue original black hippy movement, hip hop was built off the protest.

But the voices of the originators are muted. The culture doesn’t respect its elders like fans of rock n roll. It is now that Chuck D, Sistah Souljah, and KRS-One are needed the most. That requires the culture to tune them in and tune out all the noise bombarding us all daily.

Still, there have been a few talking direct solutions for communities of color. Gaining the economic independence needed to balance the scales of power and government is what is needed.

Thank You Dame Dash

The community owes a huge debt to those who have been bullish on economic progress. Hip hop is one of the only cultures that has spawned multiple millionaires and impacted global culture.

However, if it wasn’t for people like Dame Dash, Master P, and Ice Cube, who have been unapologetic about their desire for ownership of the culture to reflect its creators.

Dash has been vehement about outing interlopers in high positions. He has always encouraged the community to do for self and hire those that look like them.

Power comes from financing politicians and demanding change with a social and economic base. Currently, the CEO’s of hip hop’s most revered nineties and early 2000’s music movements are leading that charge by example.

But its not enough, as they have the financial resources to make a larger stand.

Hip Hop Summit Action Network?

Founded in 2001, the Hip-Hop Summit Action Network (HSAN) is dedicated to harnessing the cultural relevance of Hip-Hop music to serve as a catalyst for education advocacy and other societal concerns fundamental to the empowerment of youth.

The non-profit, non-partisan national coalition of Hip-Hop artists, entertainment industry leaders, education advocates, civil rights proponents, and youth leaders was very organized.

However, there has been no noise from them recently. Revolt TV held a Hip Hop Summit in Atlanta and Los Angeles last year.

However, right now in the midst of the revolution, no new unified Hip Hop movement to replace their good works. However, social media has allowed all artists and influencers to use their individual platforms to raise awareness.

We have seen artists on the front lines. However, it’s hard to decipher whether it’s for project visibility or genuine concern for the community.

A new brigade is needed that combines the money of Dr. Dre, JAY-Z, and Diddy with the grassroots activism of Dead Prez.

Until then, Hip Hop will continue to look like a landscape of independents; focused only on their audience and not the collectivization of ideas and cultural currency.

The culture doesn’t need one leader but it does need a consortium that “can’t stop, won’t stop” until freedom.

The post The Revolution is Here and How Hip Hop Should Fill Its Role appeared first on The Source.

‘I can’t breathe – The murder of George Floyd was a lynching in broad daylight.’

The signs say, Black Lives Matter. Yet the very people who are supposed to protect us too often, in too many places, don’t seem to agree.

By Rev. Jesse Jackson, Sr.
President and Founder – Rainbow PUSH Coalition

Three police officers stood and watched as a fourth, Derek Chauvin, knelt on Floyd’s neck. They watched for 8 minutes and 46 seconds, with Floyd unresponsive for 2 minutes and 53 seconds of that, according to the criminal complaint against Chauvin.

They did nothing to stop the murder.

Their silence was as much an act of violence as Cauvin’s knee. And if there were no video recording of the murder, they likely would have upheld the Code Blue loyalty and lied about what happened.

Floyd’s murder sparked peaceful demonstrations in cities across the country, demonstrations that, in Minneapolis and a few other places, turned toward riots. Chauvin and his co-conspirators weren’t immediately arrested for the murder. Had Floyd, an African American, done this to a white person, he likely would have been jailed immediately, with a bond too high to reach.

For too long, for too often, African Americans have been brutalized without consequence. Floyd’s plea for mercy — “I can’t breathe” — was an echo of Eric Garner’s last words. Laquan McDonald, Tamir Rice, Trayvon Martin, too often the killers walk free. The signs say Black Lives Matter. Yet the very people who are supposed to protect us too often, in too many places, don’t seem to agree.

Instead of accountability, police have been given impunity. There were 17 complaints filed against Chauvin in his 19 years on the force. Only one resulted in even a reprimand.

Too few of the police live in the communities they patrol. Too many see themselves as enforcers, not protectors. There are only a few bad apples, we are told. But the Code Blue wall of silence protects the abusers, and too often rots the entire barrel. Young officers learn that if they want to advance, if they want better assignments, better pay, more security, they have to fit in. And the rot keeps spreading.

The demonstrations are necessary. The rioting understandable but regrettable. Already, the damage done to property, the exchanges with the police becomes the subject, not the agenda that is necessary to focus on the outbreaks of rage that are inevitable.

“In the final analysis, the riot is the language of the unheard,” Dr. King taught us, “What is it that America has failed to hear?”

In the last years of the Obama administration, peaceful Black Lives Matter demonstrations occurred in cities across the country. In a stunning display of discipline and self-control, demonstrators protested police brutality and murders peacefully, shutting down major thoroughfares.

The Obama administration began an effort to encourage police reform. The sentence disparities between crack and cocaine — the “black” drug and the “white drug” — were reduced. Transfers of military weaponry to police forces were restricted. The Obama Justice Department entered into a series of consent decrees with more than a dozen police departments to encourage them to change their practices — to become more a guardian than an occupier. The consent decrees couldn’t root out racism, or dismiss the sadistic or the disturbed, but they could encourage a change in tactics, and perhaps in attitudes.

When Trump was elected, he immediately torpedoed the reforms, and terminated the consent decrees. He reopened the spigot on military weaponry and encouraged the police directly to get tough with offenders.

Last October, Bob Kroll, the president of the Minneapolis Police Union, appeared at a Trump rally to celebrate the president for freeing the police from the mild reforms of the Obama years. “The Obama administration and the handcuffing and oppression of police was despicable,” he told the crowd. “The first thing President Trump did when he took office was turn that around, letting the cops do their job, put the handcuffs on the criminals instead of us.”

Those trumpeting law and order offer African Americans neither.

Those peaceful protests were met with harsh reaction. The voices were not heard. And now, Minneapolis is in flames and the streets of America’s cities are filled with protesters.

What America has failed to hear — decade after decade — is the demand for equal justice under the law, the demand for equal opportunity, the call for basic rights — not only for African Americans but for all — the rights to a livable wage, decent housing, health care, a safe environment, a protective, not a dangerous police force. The suffering is real; the gap documented over and over, most recently as poverty, hunger and illness makes African Americans disproportionately the victims of the coronavirus.

This isn’t complicated. The solutions are known. From the Kerner Commission in 1968 on, the analyses have been done; the needed reforms detailed — and shelved. There is money enough for top-end tax cuts, for bailing out banks and CEOs, for waging endless wars across the world. There is never enough money to fund the gap.

And so the anger and frustration build, kindling ready to ignite. And time after time, an act of outrageous police brutality sets the kindling aflame.

The demonstrators are showing courage. We’ve also seen, in a few cities, police leaders show real leadership and wisdom. I pray that all also show caution. We demonstrate not only against the threat of Code Blue, but in the time of COVID-19. Masks, social distancing, care for one another are vital so the demonstrations for life don’t end up sacrificing lives to the virus.

In the midst of a pandemic, some march in the hope that America will listen. Some march without hope but because silence is no longer acceptable. Yes, Minneapolis needs to charge, try and convict the murderer and his accomplices. Yes, the Minneapolis police force needs to cleanse itself, inside and out.

America too needs to listen and to change.

We will come together, or we will surely come apart.

The post I Can’t Breathe – Another Lynching in Broad Daylight appeared first on The Source.

On May 31st and June 1st, 1921, the Greenwood section of Tulsa, Oklahoma burned to the ground.

The irony of near centennial this tragic moment cannot be understated, especially if you believe in the cyclical nature of life.

However, for all the detractors labeling the protestors as rioters, it is important to remember the genesis of the violence. Almost 100 years ago, today

The Biggest Act Of Domestic Terrorism

The Tulsa Race Massacre, also known as the Tulsa Race Riot, occurred over 18 hours on May 31-June 1, 1921.

A white mob of angry Tulsa residents attacked its residents of color’s, homes and businesses. This all occurred in the predominantly black Greenwood neighborhood of Tulsa, Oklahoma.

The event is probably the worst incident of racial violence in U.S. history. The fact that it was and still also is one of the least-known is a problem.

News reports were largely silent in cooperation with the destruction. However, the fact is that hundreds of people were killed and thousands more were left homeless.

Black Wall Street

In the years following World War I there was a spike in racial tensions.

White supremacist groups, including the Ku Klux Klan, performed numerous lynchings nationwide to spread fear. These acts of racially motivated violence were executed to control African Americans and prevent them from seeking retribution.

At the time, Tulsa was growing with a population of more than 100,000 people and it was highly segregated. However, crime rates were high, and the onset of vigilante justice was common.

Most of the city’s 10,000 black residents lived in a neighborhood called Greenwood. It was thriving especially as a business district known popularly as the “Black Wall Street”.

However, with all economic movements started by people of color that aren’t based in white supremacy, jealousy was rampant.

What Caused the Tulsa Race Massacre?

According to multiple reports, on May 30, 1921, a young black teenager named Dick Rowland entered an elevator. It was in the Drexel Building, an office building on South Main Street in Tulsa, and at some point, Sarah Page, screamed.

Rowland was then painted as fleeing the scene. The police were called, and the next morning they arrested Rowland.

Rumors abounded of what supposedly happened on that elevator throughout the white community. Then a front-page story in the Tulsa Tribune that afternoon reported that police had arrested Rowland for sexually assaulting Page.

That was the tipping point.

As evening fell, an angry white mob was gathering outside the courthouse, demanding the sheriff hand over Rowland. Sheriff Willard McCullough refused, and his men barricaded the top floor to protect the black teenager.

Around 9 p.m., a group of about 25 armed black men went to the courthouse to offer help guarding Rowland. After the sheriff turned them away, some of the white mob tried unsuccessfully to break into the National Guard armory nearby.

Once rumors hit the community of color of a possible lynching, a group of around 75 armed persons of color showed up to the courthouse. They were met by some 1,500 whites who also carried weapons.

Greenwood Burns

After shots were fired and chaos broke out, the outnumbered group of blacks retreated to Greenwood.

Over 14-18 hours, newly deputized groups of white residents committed numerous acts of violence against persons of color.

They even shot an unarmed man in a movie theater.

By dawn on June 1, thousands of white citizens looted and burning homes and businesses over an area of 35 city blocks. Firefighters who arrived to help put out fires later testified that rioters had threatened them with guns and forced them to leave.

According to the Red Cross, some 1,256 houses were burned and 215 others were looted but not torched.

Two newspapers, a school, a library, a hospital, churches, hotels, stores and many other black-owned businesses were among the buildings destroyed or damaged by fire.

By the time the National Guard arrived and declared martial law shortly before noon, the riot had effectively ended. Though guardsmen helped put out fires, they also imprisoned many black Tulsans, and by June 2 some 6,000 people were under armed guard at the local fairgrounds.

The Aftermath (2020 & Beyond)

In the hours after the Tulsa Race Massacre, all charges against Dick Rowland were dropped. The police concluded that Rowland had most likely stumbled into Page, or stepped on her foot.

Kept safely under guard in the jail during the riot, he left Tulsa the next morning and reportedly never returned.

The “official” tally of deaths in the massacre was 36 people killed, including 10 whites. Historians now consider that estimate much too low. The Tulsa Race Massacre stood as one of the deadliest riots in U.S. history, behind only the New York Draft Riots of 1863, which killed at least 119 people.

In the years to come, as black Oklahomans worked to rebuild their ruined homes and businesses. However, segregation in the city only increased, and Oklahoma’s newly established branch of the KKK grew in strength.

Still confused why cities across America burn today in 2020? It’s a rekindling of a sin that happened nearly 100 years ago.

The post Black Wall Street Reverberates Through the 2020 Protests Movement appeared first on The Source.

America is on fire. Not a surprise to many after another life was senselessly taken away from us. George Floyd represented millions of brown-skinned people that are targeted, attacked and judged based off the color of their skin.

We sang, we prayed, we hoped and nothing changed. Now comes the rage, anger and disbelief. Growing up as young black girl in America, I was aware of the separation of race at a very young age. Raised by my great-grandma, aunt and grandma…I already felt like a burden from day one. My mom who was a former Black Panther left me when I was 4 years old after battling several stages in life. Coming from this environment built a sad, angry confused little girl who was pushed out into a world who then treated me as a burden as well. The reality of police brutality enters our community at such a young age that even as a child I became numb to the image of seeing black men and women beat then arrested. My mom returned 7 years later and instantly began teaching me about her experiences as a Black Panther in ‘AmeriKKKa’. I moved to live with her in NYC and began attending various marches and protests against police brutality. In 1992, I was one of the few featured on the cover of the New York Amsterdam News while being maced by the NYPD at just 11-years old.

We’re treated differently in schools, retail stores, airports and anywhere others can judge or separate us. Our kinky hair, wide noses and bronze-colored skin seems to make some people uncomfortable but our talents, strength and magnetic intrigue them at the same time. We’ve watched men get beaten, abused and viciously attacked by police who have walked off free. They’ve hung black people, used plungers on them and have done deplorable things that get swept under the rug. Fast forward to today and the same things are happening over and over again and the African-American community is livid. 

Michelle Obama tweeted, ‘Right now it’s George, Breonna, and Ahmaud. Before that it was Eric, Sandra, and Michael. It just goes on, and on, and on.’ These are our sentiments. When does it stop? Cities are protesting all over America right now. Some are burning, looting and fighting and others are showing up in huge droves blocking traffic to get their point across.

What’s next? Where is America headed and what can be done to change police brutality?

The post Being Brown In America: What’s Next? appeared first on The Source.

Twitter did a very brave thing this morning. Then it also did something dangerous.

It published a tweet by President Donald Trump that advocated shooting rioters in Minneapolis and around the country but provided a disclaimer.

“This Tweet violated the Twitter Rules about glorifying violence. However, Twitter has determined that it may be in the public’s interest for the Tweet to remain accessible.”

Really, Twitter? Because we don’t have a rising population of white angst and a penchant for that angst to boil over into rampage style shootings?

The most dangerous part of the tweet is that Trump is denouncing the rioters as THUGS. Capital letters.

This means big mad and big statement to his loyal following. With his allegiance to the NRA community and worship by the alt-right, the message can be deciphered as a call to action.

In a late-night tweet, Trump wrote: “These THUGS are dishonoring the memory of George Floyd, and I won’t let that happen. Just spoke to Governor Tim Walz and told him that the Military is with him all the way. Any difficulty and we will assume control but, when the looting starts, the shooting starts. Thank you!”

The Almost “Cover Up”

A few hours later, Twitter hid the tweet behind the “glorification of violence” message. However, they were specific to the problem in Trump’s tweet:

“Violates our policies regarding the glorification of violence based on the historical context of the last line, its connection to violence, and the risk it could inspire similar actions today.”

BOOM!

“As is standard with this notice, engagements with the Tweet will be limited. People will be able to Retweet with Comment, but will not be able to Like, Reply or Retweet it.”

Twitter did everything except literally say that the tweet can be deemed as a call to action for extremist groups or individuals. With people discouraged with the way the local Minneapolis government is handling the incident, they are rioting out of frustration.

Donald Trump just casually dropped a bomb over Twitter. A virtual flare in an ocean of hate if you will. He is signaling open season on “THUGS” instead of showing up and trying to heal the city.

It is indicative of the times we are in where profits Usain Bolt leap over safety and police brutality is responded with attacks on the public by the President.

The post Donald Trump Summarizes His Outlook on Protestors of Police Brutality: ‘THUGS’ appeared first on The Source.

Tupac Shakur was about that action.

For all the conversations about the subject matter of his songs being derogatory, few talk about him as a true rider for the community.

Like that one time on Halloween 1993 when Shakur drove past two drunk off duty officers, in Atlanta, and confronted them for uttering a racial slur. There have been conflicting accounts that the cops were harming a person of color, but many transcripts do not have that information.

According to some of the eye witness accounts, it was one of the officers who first drew and possibly fired a gun. Although no weapons were recovered.

Clayton County police officer Mark Whitwell and his brother, Henry County police officer Scott Whitwell, were wounded in the incident.

Scott Whitwell, who admitted to possessing a gun he had taken from the Henry County property room, said he felt threatened when Shakur and his colleagues got out of their Mercedes Benz.

At the time, one witness who identified Shakur as having fired a gun following the incident admitted in court that darkness may have obscured his vision.

Three 9 mm bullet casings were found in the area following the shooting.

Court testimony also indicated that racial slurs may have played a part in the incident.

What Should A Bystander Do?

However, it revives the conversation about the bystander effect with police brutality. One of the most traumatic experiences ever is being assaulted by law enforcement.

Whether verbal or physical, it can be very painful and paralyze those watching. It harkens back to the era where overseers regulated plantation politics keeping everyone under the thumb of suspicion.

When the overseer singled out “wrongdoing” they made the punishment a degrading spectacle. Anyone watching knew this could be their fate: a back filled with welts from the lash.

They knew not to save their fellow enslaved.

However, Tupac Shakur, was raised by a Black Panther. He was the son of Afeni Shakur, who in the early ’70s was among the New York 21. The group of Black Panthers accused of plotting bombings in New York; all were acquitted.

Ms. Shakur was released from jail when she was eight months’ pregnant with Tupac. At the time in 1993, Shakur’s publicist, Taliba Mbonisi, said Tupac Shakur’s “revolutionary credentials are in his blood.”

It was those credentials that he displayed fervently when he saw wrongdoing to someone he didn’t even know. Just that he was also of color and in need of an assist from law enforcement.

The Verdict

Tupac Shakur, then 22 years-old, pleaded innocent to aggravated assault charges. Shakur shot one officer in the buttocks and the other in the back/abdomen area.

Shakur was charged in the shooting and Mark Whitwell was charged with firing at Shakur’s car and later lying to the investigation.

However, eventually, prosecutors dropped all charges against Tupac saying that he had acted in self-defense. Mark Whitwell was eventually charged with lying to the police about what happened and for shooting at Tupac first.

The purpose of re-hashing this is not to condone violence against anyone! But recognizing that fear can stop you from protecting yourself when that is what is needed most is tantamount during these times.

The post Redo ’93: Tupac Shakur’s Shootout With Police Proves Power To People appeared first on The Source.

Minneapolis is burning. Los Angeles stopped the freeways. Memphis is fed up and in the streets.

The tensions rose high in Minneapolis, Minnesota last night and the people spoke with their rage. The consecutive incidents of inequality, that left yet another unarmed person of color killed, boiled over.

Corporate buildings, retail establishments, law enforcement, and city property all burned overnight as looting and physical altercations followed.

Many on the outside of the struggle, and/or not of color, watched horrified at what they perceived as opportunists exploiting a chaotic window of time.

However, when the impoverished masses are fed up with the status quo and feel victimized, violence leads to appeasement: looting.

Protest or Public Nuisance?

The protests in Minneapolis over the death of George Floyd escalated Wednesday night near the site of the demonstrations. To respond the police deployed tear gas, after earlier that afternoon being informed by Mayor Jacob Frey that the officer would be charged for the crime.

“I’m imploring our city, imploring our community, imploring every one of us to keep the peace. Let’s honor George Floyd’s memory,” Frey told KARE11 in a phone interview.

However, with a lack of leadership on the front lines to calm the people down, it was for naught. The justice sought wasn’t immediate so the retribution was.

Minnesota Governor Tim Walz late Wednesday called it an “extremely dangerous situation” and urged residents to leave the area.

Unfortunately, there were unintended victims from the unrest.

One person was in custody in the shooting death near the site of the protests, Minneapolis police said. Officers responded to an initial report of a stabbing at 9:05 p.m. and found a man who wasn’t breathing lying on the sidewalk, police said in a statement Thursday morning.

The unidentified victim was rushed to Hennepin County Medical Center. At the hospital, it was discovered the victim was shot.

Change Gone Come?

Do you subscribe to the theory of social evolutionism?

It is when you view the evolution of society and human history as progressing in some new, unique direction. However, sociological cycle theory argues that events and stages of society and history generally repeat themselves in cycles.

Last night was indicative of a sociological cycle.

The people clamored for action and without a unified plan emotions bubbled over. That is natural although upsetting and disturbing to see a major metropolis burning.

However, as long as there is system of radical injustice, there will be no peace. Remember that on April 4th 1968, Senator Bobby Kennedy, was there for the people when Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. was assassinated.

His heartfelt impromptu speech in Indianapolis, during his Presidential run, called for reconciliation. Riots still broke out but Kennedy stayed the course delivering his Mindless Menace of Violence speech.

Leadership pulls up. Leadership doesn’t hide behind canned atonement declarations crafted by image teams. The world is tired of the inauthenticity.

Perhaps George Floyd was the tipping point.

The post Minneapolis is Burning Over George Floyd But Judge Not The Tipping Point appeared first on The Source.

A video is going viral of rapper Dream Doll and her friends at a party in Texas and an unknown girl can be seen getting tossed in the pool against her will. This raises the question, is it ok to disrespect black women?

Memorial Day weekend saw many folks stepping out to finally enjoy the weather after being quarantined for months. Cabin fever was at an all time high and everyone wanted to get a break from being inside. In a video circulating the internet, a black girl fully dressed with hair and makeup can be seen fighting off three men as she is dragged against her towards the pool. Fighting and kicking for them to stop, the men ignore her pleas and overpower her tossing her into the pool while others laugh.
While the act itself was horrendous and mean, the comments were even worst. 

‘Don’t go to a pool party if you don’t want to get wet….’ ‘They are friends that’s how they play…”Everyone got thrown in the pool…”It’s not that serious…’ 
But when is a woman saying ‘no’ considered serious? What if she couldn’t swim? What if she had her menstruation? Contacts? Is there anything she could have screamed to make them stop the act? No, because they didn’t feel the need to. I felt secondhand embarrassment because as a black woman myself, I’m familiar with the nonchalant attitude people take when something happens to one of us. The argument that ‘they were friends’ is just as bad because women have become conditioned to being disrespected and tricked into thinking poor treatment is ok. It doesn’t matter who was in the video, the act was wrong and insensitive. Our bodies belong to us.
Never forget the history of black women being disrespected in hip hop. Rapper Yungberg let the world know how he felt about dark women and even called himself racist.

“I’m kinda racist … I don’t like dark butts …. You know how some women prefer light skin men or dark skin men. It’s rare that I do dark butts – that’s what I call dark-skinned women … I [don’t date women] darker than me. I love the pool test. If you can jump in the pool exactly like you are and you don’t come out looking better than you looked before going in the pool – then that’s not a good look. Any woman that uses brown gel to set down her baby hair is not poppin’!!!”

This immature, ‘Jim Crow’ way of thinking has to be discussed. Black women are creators and mothers of the earth. Nourishing, loving and bold with unmatched strength. Lift your queens instead of embarrassing them.
But serious question, why so much disrespect towards black women? Watch the video below.

Who else misses the 90’s? Shout out to Arrested Development for teaching the youth how to protect our queens.

The post [WATCH] Girl Tossed in the Pool Against Her Will: Are Black Girls Disrespected in Hip-Hop? appeared first on The Source.

Shaun King is polarizing. For those in the culture, he is fearless and direct with his excoriation of white privilege and injustice.

For his critics, he is a con man manipulating racial sensitivity to his financial advantage. This morning, King is trending on Twitter for all the wrong reasons after an explosive article came out in The Daily Beast.

Last night, the article, “Shaun King Keeps Raising Money, and Questions About Where It Goes” dropped like a bomb. It details how King went on an ambitious venture to re-establish Frederick Douglass’ newspaper, The North Star.

Please note this is no relation to The North Star Group, parent company of THE SOURCE.

Life Of A King

King and his partner, progressive journalist Benjamin Dixon, launched an ambitious multimedia reboot with the blessing of Douglass’ descendants.

The project was celebrated across social media by celebrities and cultural critics alike. Its champions included Susan Sarandon, Michael Eric Dyson, and Megan Mullally.

That propulsion led to a boast of “multiple angel investors” on Twitter by the company. They also claimed to have more than 30,000 subscribers contributing $5 or $10 a month based on subscription level.

Many gave funds. Billionaire philanthropist of color, Robert Smith, gave a healthy $10,000 a month. The project seemed on its way to blaze a new path in history, until it didn’t.

However, 14 months after launching, almost none of King’s deliverables have appeared. The headquarters and television studio was quietly shuttered last summer. All the Atlanta-based staffers were laid off and the site struggled with issues that alienated many subscribers.

The mobile app also disappeared for over a year.

Over-Zealous Or Overt Con?

King has chalked the experience up to over-zealousness and attempting to launch too much content at once. Former staffers said the issue was less King’s over-ambition than what they viewed as a few less flattering competing factors.

They describe a pattern of absenteeism, insistence on absolute control, and radical incompetence. In addition, there are long-standing accusations by his former employees and supporters. They say that King has inflated, mismanaged or failed to account for funds he’s raised for various social justice causes.

However, no criminal or civil charges have ever been filed against King and that is important to note. The Daily Beast piece was written by Kali Holloway, a woman of color. She exposes what the new digital generation will have to constantly face, digital emotional manipulation.

Charismatic leaders are electric and serve an integral purpose in providing a voice for a community. It takes a village. Too often these leaders begin to make the movement less about collectivization and more about personal gains.

King is a prominent voice for social justice. No doubt he has done much to raise awareness of police brutality and more. However, no one is above reproach. His detailed missteps need to be in the light so people can wake up to his humanity.

Shaun King has used the power of the pen to uplift communities of color while also propping up himself. But will his shortcomings expel him from the platform he has built?

In the court of public opinion, for many, he is already cancelled.

The post Twitter Takes Aim at Shaun King for Not Fulfilling Promises appeared first on The Source.

Recently, a slew of videos on social media has been showing Caucasian women attempting to police people of color.

Allow us to introduce Karen.

This phenomenon, that is growing in force and intensity, has a power that is been blinding. However, what is happening is not some obscure threat that communities of color can take lightly.

In fact, when you examine history, this is direct and very visceral obstacle that must be neutralized.

From a white woman in a park that accuses a man of color of “threatening my life” before calling 911; to an officer of color being followed and harassed for being falsely accused of breaking and entering his own apartment building.

The incidents are getting more and more outrageous and potentially dangerous at the same time.

‘Karen’ normally shows her head when people of color are doing things that they find personally offensive. However, the real audacity of it all is that they fabricate scenarios and escalate tensions to involve law enforcement.

A Pattern Of Manipulation

Throughout the years in America, there have been numerous incidents where ‘Karen’ showed her privilege with fatal consequences.

Let’s start with the most infamous one, the 1955 case of Emmett Till. The young Chicagoan came to visit his family in Mississippi. While there, he was accused by a white woman of whistling at her.

When word got out, a lynch mob came, took Till and murdered him.His mother, Mamie Till Bradley, held a public funeral service with an open casket. Her goal was to show the world the disasterous effects of racism and privilege in America.

Fast-forward to 2012 and the case of Trayvon Martin who was stalked, provoked, and murdered by a male version of ‘Karen’ in George Zimmerman.

The case took directly challenged the state of Florida’s controversial stand your ground law and it’s apparent ties to institutional racism.

History is like a carousel constantly repeating. Now, with the rise of community vigilantes seeking to provoke and challenge people of color, there will undoubtedly be casualties.

However, as a hip hop community, we are comprised with a heavy base of color. It must be pointed out when people of color are being policed for the perception of being dangerous.

As history has shown, a generation can be destroyed over one false accusation by a ‘Karen’. If we’ve truly got us, it is our charge to eradicate that very real and potentially fatal threat.

The post Viral Videos Show the Rise Of ‘Karen’ Is The New, Old Threat To People Of Color appeared first on The Source.

Social activist and spiritual leader, El-Hajj Malik El-Shabazz, better known as Malcolm X, would have been 95 years old today.

As we approach his centennial, it is appropriate to point out how relevant his message is now, decades later.

The Beginning

With an incredible transformation story that has inspired generations, Malcolm X’s legacy is rooted in struggle. The son of a pastor and loving mother, then Malcolm Little learned early about the social politics of America.

Growing up in Omaha, Nebraska, young Malcolm’s father was murdered for being a follower of Marcus Garvey who preached black entrepreneurship. From there his family was split up as his mother was admitted into a mental institution.

As he bounced around from homes, he developed a street edge rooted in survival and began a life of crime. From Boston to Harlem, “Red”, a nickname derived from the copper tone of his hair and skin, was a whole enterprise.

Along the way he met and had street dealings with future stars like Red Foxxx, who was also still in “the life”.

The Tipping Point

However, when life caught up to Malcolm and he was imprisoned, time stopped so he could become enlightened. Regardless of how one feels about The Nation of Islam’s or the Honorable Elijah Muhammad himself, they are certified life-changers.

Malcolm’s story of uplift after prison through ministry is very common for The Nation and a blessing for impoverished communities. However, his spirit was larger than anyone’s organization and spilled into the politics of the day.

From delivering a hard-line stance during the Civil Rights movement to his commitment to African-American empowerment, Malcolm was God sent. Like most modern-day prophets, his energy was infectious and effective. So much so that he scared the American government and then FBI Director J. Edgar Hoover.

Malcolm had to contend with government-sanctioned surveillance via the COINTELPRO program. He had to work amid dissent amongst the spiritual ranks due to his highly effective and passionate speech-making.

Also, he had to live fearlessly in a world that hated everything about his truth.

It is that spirit of fearlessness and advocacy for community no matter the cost that we celebrate the life and work of this dear soul. He made phrases like, “By Any Means Necessary” a lifestyle, inspiring many.

Today, as uncertainly looms over communities of color with the COVID-19 pandemic disproportionately affecting us, Malcolm X’s words are like a salve.

In life and now in spirit, he continues to motivate the world to be better and want more for themselves ad community. He is the embodiment of resilience and wisdom through experience, and we are all his extended congregation.

Happy Birthday to ya! (Stevie Wonder voice).

The post Malcolm X Would Have Been 95 Years Old Today and His Message is Louder Than Ever appeared first on The Source.

It’s been a year since the untimely death of rap star/philanthropist Nipsey Hussle but the gifts he shared still permeate throughout the world.

Nipsey Hussle was one of the MC’s that stood for something. In an era where drugs, infidelity and violence were glorified through music, Nipsey brought the hood together. He gave the hood hope, taught kids about ownership, real estate, loving one queen and building your legacy. Growing up I never had my mom or my dad to guide me through life’s harsh realities….I had hip hop. I studied Queen Latifah who reminded me I was a queen. I had Public Enemy blasting in my headsets teaching me to love myself. KMD’s visuals in their video ‘Who Me’ resonated with my dark skin and made me love myself. Arrested Development, Tupac Shakur, KRS-One and more gave young black children confidence when some of us had none.

Fast forward to today, it’s a struggle to find uplifting rap music that encourages and motivates. Yes we have Rapsody and Killer Mike but it’s a stretch to hear them on the radio stations that promote pop rap music. Before he passed, Nipsey was scheduled to produce a documentary on the late Dr. Sebi. Nipsey was big on health and wanted others to learn more about the food system and what we put into our bodies. His theories made people talk about Sebi and research the food industry while a huge population went vegan. He taught us about taking back and owning our neighborhoods. From real estate to starting our own businesses Nipsey—much like Tupac sparked a thought that changed a generation. 

Many of us weren’t taught about owning our own from our parents because they may not have had that knowledge themselves. Like many of the great leaders before him including my friend Dr Khalid Muhammad who also passed—they both spoke about ownership.I didn’t come from a rich family but a rich family will come for me. I am inspired by Nipsey. Starting somewhere is better than doing nothing at all. I recently began a business for my 3-year old daughter selling a product that she already loved—Seamoss Gel. Promoting health is wealth I want to teach her about having her own and building her legacy—inspired by Nipsey. 

“Stay motivated, stay inspired and show love to your people.” From the words of the late great Nipsey Hussle. May he continue to rest in power and may he shine through us.

The post One Year Later: Inspired By Nipsey Hussle appeared first on The Source.

COVID-19 has ravaged the coastlines of the United States. Both New York and California are the two hardest-hit regions. Their governors are also the two biggest non-federal front-liners in the war against the virus.

Last Thursday, during one of his daily coronavirus briefings, Gov. Andrew Cuomo admitted that 385 people have died in the state so far. Currently, about 37,000 have tested positive and over 1,000 are in a hospital intensive care unit.

Still, had it not been for the leadership exhibited by Cuomo, the human toll would have been much worse.

“No one has been here before,” said Cuomo. “And that’s why, look, it is going to change us. I can see it in my daughters’ eyes when I talk to them about this every night.

“I can see the fear…. They’re taking it all in. What does it mean? This is going to form a new generation and it will transform who we are and how we think. But you’re not alone. You’re not alone. Nobody is alone.”

However, the question must still be asked: why wasn’t New York prepared for a pandemic? With so many people living in NYC and the state’s proximity to border countries like Canada, the tendency is to believe all disaster scenarios have been thought out.

As the media and industry hub of the country and for some the world, one would think there was a contingency already in place for any great calamity.

What 9/11 has taught us is that there are no foolproof moments and Mayor’s and Governors are often caught handling major catastrophe on the fly. This also makes their efforts even more unique as when something unexpected happens, only the strong will step up to lead the rectification process.

Cuomo’s 9/11 Moment

Cuomo leads the country’s financial and media epicenter and he knows it. From a relatively muted media presence, Cuomo has been on a full blitzkrieg giving the media unprecedented access into his thinking and looking like America’s Governor.

Sound familiar?

When former mayor Rudy Giuliani had to deal with the tragic 9/11 terrorist attacks, he placed partisanship aside and went to work. His take-charge approach resonated with the country and eventually the world. It made him, “America’s Mayor.”

The same effect is happening to Cuomo and for good reason, he and fellow California Governor Gavin Newsom look more adept at battling this than the federal government.

With the world praising the $2 trillion dollar bailout to the economy, it comes late in relation to the State response which has been constant.

The federal government’s failure to coordinate a major relief effort also elevated the Governor’s profiles. With states left to search for masks, ventilators and other medical necessities, a competition for crucial supplies was created.

Newsom became the first governor to order a mandatory quarantine for state residents with limited exceptions. When NYC Mayor Bill de Blasio was still on the fence about shutting down schools, Cuomo announced he would invoke his own executive authority to close the city schools.

De Blasio shut them down soon after.

Cuomo is the quintessential touch New Yorker even being critical of the $2 trillion virus relief bill calling it “irresponsible” and “reckless” for the amount of relief it provides for New York and other state and local governments.

By never directly going at Trump and focusing on how his state will defeat its current center of the pandemic position, Cuomo is also showing he is diplomatic nationally.

“I watched, over the last few days, Gov. Cuomo, I watched Gavin Newsom,” Trump said on Sunday. “I watched both of them. And they’ve been, you know, very complimentary.”

With all eyes on New York during the COVID-19 barrage on the country, Governor Cuomo is here for it and ready to do battle.

Isn’t that what a potential President looks like?

The post For New York Governor Andrew Cuomo COVID-19 Is His Giuliani 9/11 Moment appeared first on The Source.

ABC News featured a short documentary about comedian Richard Pryor’s life through his last days. The child of a prostitute with a father who was a pimp, Pryor grew up in a peculiarly toxic environment. He described his childhood as hell with no one to talk to and witnessed his mother service men then kiss him goodnight. Forever tainting his view of women his tumultuous upbringing and personal demons forced him to turn his pain into comedy.

In the early 60’s when the Rat Pack were at the height of their careers, Pryor infiltrated the comic world dominated by white comedians and eventually made history.

The documentary gives a look inside Richard Pryor’s life and speaks to several of his past girlfriends and peers about his drug abuse. Pryor had seven marriages to five women and several children. Former girlfriend Patricia VonHeitman revealed that her first date with Pryor was a trip to buy cocaine and before meeting the comedian she had never even spoken to a black man—let alone kiss one before. VonHeitman shares that when they were once strapped for cash he told her to find a trick at the Beverly Hills Hotel and bring back the money. When she wasn’t able to complete the job she alleges Pryor beat her with a bottle.

Watch the explosive documentary below.

The post [WATCH] Was Richard Pryor’s Women and Drug Abuse Triggered By Mom’s Prostitution? appeared first on The Source.

Singer K Michelle went on The Morning Culture on Atlanta’s V-103 and expressed her thoughts on men, dating, and relationships. She said she doesn’t see any good men out there anymore like her grandad who raised 8 children after her grandma passed. She says she doesn’t think men are good people because they can do things they consider small like cheating and do it anyway knowing the hurt it causes.

She continues, “Women can be doctors, lawyers but they in the bed crying over what a man did to them…I’m looking at all these men cheating and bringing down these women.You giving em AIDS, you killing em, I look at men and I have an anger for them…”

She revealed she has a TV show coming out about women looking to remove silicone from their body animist are in their situations because of a man.

I love all my beautiful sisters but as a black woman who has dated and traveled, it saddens me to think women believe they have no other options. My opinion is if you believe all men are the same it says a lot about you ladies. Quit dating the same type of man over and over and most importantly, ‘Go where you’re celebrated, not tolerated’.

We wish K.Michelle the best of luck. Check out her interview below!

The post [WATCH] Singer K Michelle Says ‘Men Bring Women Down’ appeared first on The Source.

On the cover of issue #276, our inaugural ‘Future Issue’, journalist Courtney Brown sat down with international superstar A Boogie With Da Hoodie to discuss his rise to stardom. During a revealing moment in the interview, the 23-year old rapper discusses the connection of this generation’s use of drugs and hip hop.

Check out the excerpt below and pick up issue #276 on stands now!

Not shying away from the hard questions, he doesn’t blink when asked about the pill epidemic. “It’s never gonna change, it’s only going to get worse. Rappers are never going to stop talking about drugs unfortunately. I do it myself. So I can’t contradict on that. It’s like a foundation we built. We didn’t do it for them to do drugs, but we do it because…I ain’t going to lie, it’s a selfish thing. It’s the selfish part of us. I talk about drugs in my music because I want certain people to gravitate, certain fans that I don’t have. ‘People out here doing drugs… all right let’s get them. You know that’s just how I think. It’s a business at the end of the day.”

The post A Boogie Wit Da Hoodie ‘Rappers Are Never Going To Stop Talking About Drugs’ appeared first on The Source.

Nicki Minaj has championed her career on being the “voice” for women who are powerless but over the year her decisions both professionally and personally have shown otherwise.

In 2010 when Nicki burst on the mainstream stage, she rode the wave as the sexually liberated woman who was bossing her way to the top by unapologetically following the blueprint of her male counterparts to forge a lane for women in the new school game of Hip-Hop. Facing harsh criticism of her own for the lack of homage to Lil’ Kim for the blatant style jack, Nicki was Hip-Hop’s underdog who had no problem battling her way to the top. In a 2009 interview with Vlad TV, Minaj said that she felt women weren’t successful in Hip-Hop due to being catty and forgetting the business side of the industry.

“Many women come in trying to diss other women or trying to just do music forgetting that this is a business. Let me explain, my goal is to take the game to where the guys took it as a businesswoman,” Minaj proclaimed.

While Nicki has made good on that promise to self, she didn’t achieve it without knocking down a lot of women on her way up.

From her beef early on with Lil Kim, Mariah Carey, and Taylor Swift to her most recent squabbles with Remy Ma and Cardi B, Nicki Minaj has been accused by women in the industry across multiple genres of attempting to block their shine due to her own insecurities about her career.

During her very public feud, Remy Ma broke her silence blasting the Young Money emcee for using her star power to ensure that she couldn’t get exposure. During an interview on the Wendy Williams Show, Remy was one of the first artists to speak out against Minaj with claims that she used her fame to stop her from obtaining success.

“People keep saying that they are waiting for a response but [“Shether”] was the response because she started it and not just with me, she’s done this with a lot of females from Lil’ Kim, to Mariah (Carey), to Taylor (Swift) and no one says anything,” Remy said. “It wasn’t necessarily the little subliminal stuff on record because I don’t care about records and I spoke to her before and told her, ‘you’re supposed to say you’re the best.’ It was the behind the scene stuff that you people would never know about, as far as trying to keep me off red carpets and trying to make sure awards don’t go to me or she’s not going to be in attendance, trying to get people to make bad reports about my album sales or anything I’m doing to make me look less and her look better.”

This has been a common thread amongst all of the women in the industry who have been on the receiving end of Nicki’s wrath for simply being successful. Even LHHATL star and R&B songstress K. Michelle called out Nicki for trying to sabotage her career for what she alleges is “no reason.”  Back in 2017, K. Michelle took to Twitter to call out Minaj for a 2014 incident involving her sophomore album, Anybody Wanna Buy A Heart and noted that Meek Mill gave her the title track from the project but it was suddenly snatched away because his girlfriend at the time, Nicki Minaj, thought they were having sex.

“I was told that the song from my album was being taken from me, because the rapper that gave it to me girlfriend thought I was f*** him,” K on Twitter. “God did more than handle the situation, I’ve sat back and healed up. Watched karma. I’m not perfect but I’m not evil or insecure.”

Fast forward to the latter part of 2017 when Nicki started her re-emergence back in music by throwing shots at Cardi B who had taken over the industry after the release of her infectious hit, “Bodak Yellow.” Despite their collaboration, it wasn’t until fans started calling out Minaj for her lack of support for the fellow New York-bred femcee that Minaj went from foe to friend…sort of.

In August 2017, Cardi performed in Greensboro, N.C. During the show, she uploaded a video to her Instagram story of herself playing Yo Gotti and Nicki Minaj’s song “Rake It Up.” Nicki grabbed the video and posted it to her own IG and then in September she took to Twitter to initiate congratulations to Cardi for crushing the Billboard record for most weeks at number 1.

Congratulations to a fellow NEW YAWKA on a RECORD BREAKING achievement. Bardi, this is the only thing that matters!!! Enjoy it??? @iamcardib

— QUEEN (@NICKIMINAJ) September 25, 2017

But the applause was short-lived, because soon thereafter Nicki began preparing for the release of her album, Queen, and began a victim filled tirade against Cardi about what she felt was ill-treatment during the promotion of the Migos hit record Motorsport. During an interview on Beats1 Radio with Zane Lowe, Minaj states that Cardi “hurt her feelings” by not being “appreciative” that she was on the record with her.

“I remember when I first came in the game,  if a female artist of that stature hopped on a record with me, I would be appreciative. I would be singing their praises and saying thank you. The thing that hurt me is the interview I seen of Cardi out promoting “Motorsport”, she looks agitated and angry and all she keeps saying is, ‘I didn’t hear that verse, she changed her verse,’ and I was like ‘what’?”

While interviewing with Rob Markman for Genius during the week of the album release,Nicki’s humility had flown out the window and instead was an angrier and conceited Minaj who with each interview incited her Barbz to take on anyone who had an opinion about her.

“So in no way shape or form do I not think it’s a good thing to open doors, because doors were opened for me,” Nicki shared. “Go on YouTube and see how many times I said b*tches’ names!” before adding, “But y’all training new bitches to come in and disrespect me!”

But if you look at Minaj’s track record, Cardi B is the only rapper to do a song with Nicki and that was actually a Migos song. Despite her positioning, Nicki has never put a woman on her platform, to help boost her career.

Earlier this year, Minaj even lashed out at female Toronto based-writer Wanna after she tweeted that the Starships singer was in need of a new direction with her upcoming album Queen, and should be rapping about “mature content” instead of “silly shit” given that she’s “touching 40.” Sound advice, but Minaj didn’t think so and decided to attack the writer via inbox calling her both “ugly” and a “hoe”.

“When ya ugly a– was 24 u were pushing 30? I’m 34. I’m touching 40? Lol (laughing out loud). And what does that have to do with my music? Eat a d— u hating a– hoe. Got the nerve to have a trini (Trindad and Tobago) flag on ur page. You must not have heard the Pinkprint. Or pills n potions, bed of lies, save me, my recent feature with Alicia keys, Tasha cobbs. Just say u jealous I’m rich, famous intelligent, pretty and go! But wait! Leave my ballls! Tired of u sucking them. I dropped my album almost 4 years ago. My bad I’m 25. So at 31. How about you GET LIKE ME? Why don’t you ask me to help you get RICH?! Been on top & I ain’t going NOWHERE.”

We also can’t overlook the support that Minaj showed her brother during his child rape charge when he was convicted of having sex with her then 11-year old step-niece. Minaj who before the arrest of her sibling tweeted that rapists “should be killed”, doubled down during the case by according to her brother’s attorney, “backing her brother 100 percent” and calling the then allegations against her brother, “lies”.

While Nicki has never publicly commented on her brother’s case, it didn’t come as much of a surprise that she stood behind him. According to published reports, Minaj reportedly posted Miraj’s $100,000 bail and used two of her homes to back the lofty amount. Shortly after news broke, she also posted a photo of the two together with a caption showing her support.

“I would cross the ocean for u. I would go & bring u the moon. Promise u. For u I will. I love my brother so much man,” she wrote.

Minaj’s lack of concern for women also came to a head when she collaborated with another convicted sex offender Tekashi 69 for the lackluster single, “FeFe”. When fans questioned her support of the rapper and collaboration, instead of owning up to the poor choice, Minaj dragged yet another woman into the ring by calling out Lady Gaga for her work with a suspected womanizer and abuser R. Kelly in a since-deleted tweet.

As if that wasn’t enough, Nicki left even her Barbz scratching their heads when she chose to publicly endorse New York Republican Governor Andrew Cuomo over Democrat and first woman candidate Cynthia Nixon.

New Yorkers & all NYCHA residents its time to get JUSTICE, VOTE Thur. Sept. 13 for Gov. Cuomo, Lt. Gov. Hochul & Tish James. They know how to work for the people to make NY even GREATER. Spread the word. See you at the Polls

— QUEEN (@NICKIMINAJ) September 12, 2018

Despite the shock, this isn’t the first time she chose a candidate that didn’t believe in equal rights for women, in 2012 Minaj caught heat for endorsing then Presidential Candidate Mitt Romney.

Based on her actions both personally and professionally, it’s no secret that Minaj has no respect for her female counterparts but instead looks at us as a way to garner album sales by attempting to associate without actually relating to the real plight that women face. Minaj has been so driven to handle business like “men do” that she is actually walking in their footsteps and all over women. Despite the amount of “doors” she feels she’s opening for women, the truth is Minaj is really responsible for the stagnation. While women are not owed anything by Nicki, we don’t deserve to be used by her either.

The post [Op-Ed] Friend or Foe: Why Nicki Minaj Doesn’t Care About Women appeared first on The Source.

President Abraham Lincoln signed the Emancipation Proclamation on January 1, 1863, which dictated that all slaves in the rebellious states “shall be then, thenceforward, and forever free.” But the law only mattered on paper.

With a limited number of Union Army troops (U.S. Army) on the ground, Major General Gordon Granger, weren’t able to inform states about the proclamation as quickly as today’s digital age moves. In fact, they weren’t even close.

It took Maj. Gen. Granger and the Union Army two-and-a-half years to notify Texas — the final rebellious state — that all slaves were now in fact free as declared on June 19, 1865.

“The people of Texas are informed that, in accordance with a proclamation from the Executive of the United States, all slaves are free. This involves an absolute equality of personal rights and rights of property between former masters and slaves, and the connection heretofore existing between them becomes that between employer and hired labor. The freedmen are advised to remain quietly at their present homes and work for wages. They are informed that they will not be allowed to collect at military posts and that they will not be supported in idleness either there or elsewhere.” —General Orders, Number 3; Headquarters District of Texas, Galveston, June 19, 1865

Imagine a world where a law is passed by executive order to end your enslavement, but you’re still held prisoner because there weren’t enough soldiers to deliver the news fast enough. Imagine being continually raped, spat on and beaten two-and-a-half years longer than legally permitted. Imagine Union soldiers sitting back and allowing slave owners to get one more season of work out of you before requiring them to compensate you for your labor.

Now, imagine living in a world where you’re fully aware of and enjoying your freedom, yet you sit back and watch forms of modern day slavery take place and think you’ll solve the problem with 210 words or less.

The latter world is what currently defines the racial, social and economic climate of the 21st century — 153 years removed from a time when the Black community banded together to ensure all freedoms.

However, with a new and extremely unorthodox regime in office, the state of America is sliding backwards once again. Thus, the fight for freedom has resurfaced, and its death toll is increasing at an exponentially high rate. So what now? 

The question has yet to be answered, but hopefully it will appear before two-and-a-half more years go by.

Take a look at what some of the Black community’s most influential people have to say about #Juneteenth below.

On #Juneteenth, we celebrate emancipation and remember the long struggle for freedom. The slaves in Galveston were not told they were free until 2 yrs after Lincoln’s Emancipation Proclamation. More than 150 yrs later, our work is far from finished to achieve equality for all. pic.twitter.com/QAvVZGTxH5

— Kamala Harris (@KamalaHarris) June 19, 2018

"Juneteenth is a time to recommit ourselves to the work that remains undone. We remember that even in the darkest hours, there is cause to hope for tomorrow’s light." —@BarackObama marking Juneteenth in 2016

— The Obama Foundation (@ObamaFoundation) June 19, 2018

"We need to advocate for an accurate history." #Juneteenth2018 https://t.co/KGOPl20A0X

— shonda rhimes (@shondarhimes) June 19, 2018

The post The History Behind Juneteenth: What It Meant Then and Where We Are Now appeared first on The Source.

Donald Trump has been very active attacking sports figures in 2017. Notice he hasn’t gone after one person in particular yet? That would be LeBron James.

After Trump entered the U.S. presidential race in June 2015, campaigning with rhetoric that many in communities of color found to be divisive, NBA teams were among the first to discontinue their relationships with Trump hotels. King James led that charge when he was the first to pull out from staying at a Trump hotel.

After LeBron refused to stay at the Trump Soho, a staff member told @SarahMaslinNir, regular business from sports teams dried up. Soon, it won’t be the Trump Soho. That’s the real reason Trump hasn’t attacked LeBron. He has an acute affect on his brand. https://t.co/VKXni1WL4z

— Jamil Smith (@JamilSmith) November 25, 2017

But they started leaving, and they're unlikely to return, since Trump has made athletes a target. 7/ pic.twitter.com/Fzf7593ZTv

— David Fahrenthold (@Fahrenthold) October 12, 2017

Trump has always come of as a bully, but what happens when the bully gets punked? It’s one thing to go after LaVar Ball or Marshawn Lynch, but why no words for James? After all, he did call him a “bum”.

Maybe it’s because James is America’s most beloved athlete and he has a better grasp of social media. Maybe it’s the fact that James conducts himself at a level of professionalism and humanitarian, things we should demand from our president. Whatever the case may be,  Trump doesn’t want to bark up that tree with the James.

Usually, when someone is costing you money, you address that person and the issue. Time will tell if Trump ever calls James out on Twitter. If he ever does, expect a nuclear Twitter battle that will get super ugly.

The post Is Donald Trump Afraid to Take Shots at LeBron James? appeared first on The Source.

Just the song cover alone let you know that Remy wasn’t bringing no subliminal bullshit.

It’s now painfully apparent that one of the most vicious and precisely aimed diss records in the history of Hip Hop was shot by a convicted female felon at what many would say WAS the only relevant female emcee in the game today. There’s no argument that Ms. Pink Print has held it down for the women in the rap game for just about as long as Remy Ma was sitting behind the wall at Bedford Hills Correctional Facility. In that time, the momentum built up from artists like Lauryn Hill, Missy Elliot, Eve, Trina and others coming into the new millennium had all but come to a complete halt with the exception of who many chalked up as just a Lil Kim wannabe; Nicki Minaj.

Those who are old enough to remember the Nas vs. Jay-Z battle will confirm that the climate of Hip Hop’s “bling era” was type stale and a battle between NYC’s best rhyme spitters brought excitement back to the community that was still healing from the deaths of Biggie and Tupac after their battle on wax. Verses about material possessions or sexual prowess weren’t conversation worthy among real rap aficionados anymore since rappers no longer had a financial or creative ceiling, but when they heard the “Fuck Jay-Z” on the beginning of Nas’ “Ether”, everyone paid acute attention because they knew regardless of who made the most money, that’s what the essence of an emcee is made of. Also, someone’s career could be over at the end of the verse. Remy Ma, being raised the borough of Hip Hop’s birthplace and reppin’ an extension of the legendary Diggin’ In The Crates crew(Terror Squad) she knew the importance of dropping a competitive track like Ether, thus, “Shether” was born. Just as Jay knew he had to beat the best in order to be the best and as Kool Moe Dee knew before he took on Busy Bee and as the Blastmaster knew before BDP dropped “The Bridge Is Over”, Reminisce Mackie made a conscious decision to take a shot at the throne…and she hit the bullseye.

Now, what is the next move for Nicki? For the rookie minded Hip Hopper or music fan in general, the answer would be for Nicki not to respond and continue to make the mainstream hits that made her a household name. Well, Onika hails from a similar background and understands how her career could be disgraced by this, so a comeback of some sort is due, especially since her rhyme writing skills have now been put on trial. It’s a reminder that her success morphed from a culture that thrives on the notion that your entertainment persona mirrors your real life and you better be ready to prove it. Besides the fact that she is a lyrical beast being a prodigy of the late Big Pun, a large part of Remy’s appeal is that she shot her former friend for “sneak theiving” from her, went up north, did her time and is now back on the scene. That street certification and spontaneity has always overshadowed mainstream success in the Hip Hop community. Add on the accusations of being a negative role model for girls and supporting a pedophile and you have the contents of a real intellectual challenge for Nicki Minaj in striking back at Remy in front of the culture that made her the successful artist she is today. After all, that’s what Hip Hop is about.

The post Op-Ed: Why Hip Hop Needs The Nicki Minaj/Remy Ma Battle appeared first on The Source.

While endless studies have been conducted on the psyche of the creative, many claims dance around the general consensus that a large majority of creative people are both uniquely introverted and extroverted. While this is not always the case, a major key lies in discovering and honoring the environment that best suits an individual’s creative process. When considering a reputedly exclusive artist like Frank Ocean, an extrovert-leaning person may be confused, infuriated or both regarding how he unfolded his latest work. I know I was.

What an extrovert may consider a sloppy roll-out, an introvert may consider to be an absolute work of art and find beauty or value in the process leading up to the product. As we all know, Frank Ocean is someone who recently fell victim to at-times unforgivably harsh criticism regarding how he went about releasing his latest album. It got so bad in social media circles that his loyal supporters created a call to action to leave the artist alone. Fans felt entitled to his album and when an optimistic July came and went, some wondered if this all turned into a cruel joke gone-too-far and his album would remain mysteriously shelved forever. Luckily, that was not the case, but one still has to wonder if what we saw with Frank Ocean is on its way towards becoming the norm as the traditional way to release music doesn’t seem to cut it these days. And if it is, is that really so bad? Are we so entitled as consumers that we need every artist to follow the same formula because that’s what works for us?

When examining the release process of artists such as Kanye West, Beyoncé and Rihanna, the pattern is very similar. Frank Ocean now falls into this as well, perhaps at a new extreme. These artists can, arguably, get away with whatever they want in regards to their art and how they unveil their art because their fanbases will always follow. If West wants to sell out Madison Square Garden to play unfinished and unmastered tracks off of an iPod, so be it. If Beyoncé wants to break the Internet overnight, so it will be. If Rihanna wants to tease her new album in a series of videos that unlock literal and figurative doors though her “ANTI diaRY,” that’s cool too (except of course when TIDAL gets in the way).

Each one of these artists experienced unnecessary pressure from their inpatient fans to deliver a project so good the botched, annoying or never-ending or nonexistent promotional campaigns would be worth it. Frank Ocean experienced that pressure for four years at a unrelenting level, and now people are joking that given the amount of creative work he recently shared, he’s about to disappear for the next five years. To say that’s unfair is an understatement.

As we’ve seen several times this year, sometimes the roll-out of an album overshadows the album itself. How messed up is that?! Are we really going to remember that one time Frank Ocean took his sweet time to deliver his art over the fact that he dropped two albums, two visuals and a magazine within 48 hours for us to consume and digest just as quickly? I certainly hope not.

By loose definition, introversion enables people to feel energized by the time they spend alone and extroversion creates an opportunity for people to feel energized by being in the company of others. Frank Ocean definitely lies in the former. While no creative person wants to be categorized or confined by a label, Ocean being labeled an introvert may inspire more good than harm. Introverts, by nature, are sensitive. Not saying that extroverts aren’t, but an introvert-leaning person may be hesitant to share their self-expressive work because of that sensitivity and for a fear of being misunderstood or criticized. Extroverts also grossly outnumber introverts, so if you were outraged at Frank Ocean, you weren’t the only one by any means. In fact, you were in the majority. Perhaps introverts can relate more to Frank Ocean in general, and understanding why that makes sense will help bring his extroverted supporters one step closer to figuring out his intentions in the first place, while also allowing for others to let up on criticizing him for his conscious decisions to release his album on his own terms.

“Now keep in mind that I’m an artist and I’m sensitive about my s**t,” Erykah Badu once famously said. (Of course, she said it best.) Frank Ocean probably relates heavy enough to that sentiment to retweet it, fav it and print out the Tumblr-ready quote as a reminder. There’s no way it’s an easy emotional task to have put yourself into your work for years and have millions of people hounding you for it for just as long. When he finally made his way up the staircase he built during his curious live video stream, it was impossible not to celebrate the view along with him. It’s a perfect metaphor. The view is always worth the climb, and Ocean’s new music is a testament to that. It’s almost too good.

Frank Ocean is the rare type of artist that lives his art. This is as evident in his public persona as it is in his personal blog posts. While his disregard for following a schedule had the most impatient of fans frustrated, to be frustrated with him is to do him an extreme disservice. Considering how much goes into a project, Ocean really didn’t make us wait too long. He doesn’t owe us anything. In a way, Frank Ocean gave us more while giving us less. Every look into his creative process revealed more about him than a quote in a traditional interview ever could. Considering his album is currently #1, it’s without a doubt that this crazy ride Ocean brought us on was more than worth the at-times infuriating and confusing wait.

Through all of this, Frank Ocean is helping to pave a new way for creative introverts to thrive. Instead of criticizing the process, fans are being subject to learning how to celebrate the process. And for an artist like Ocean, as well as for those who relate heavily to him as an artist, that really is everything.

The post Frank Ocean Is Paving A New Way For Creative Introverts To Thrive appeared first on The Source.

Jay Z has this habit of taking over a song that he is tapped to contribute a featuring verse on.

In pure New York City fashion, Hov jumped on the official ‘All The Way Up’ remix alongside Fat Joe & Remy Ma and had streets, tweets, and everything in between buzzing. With Funk Flex starting the song from the top over-and-over on Hot 97 in his trademark fashion, a lot of current hip hop fans got to glimpse a missing energy in this space thanks to this latest remix verse from Jigga.

After researching just how many remix verses that Jay-Z has, ten standouts were selected for this latest list on The Source.  Note the wording of this piece — 10 of the best Jay Z remixes.  Purposely phrased to not be seen as the definitive “best of” list; think of this more as a resource to the like & times of S. Carter’s raps.

Thumb thru our list highlighting 10 of the best Jay-Z remix verses and check the Spotify playlist at the bottom which also has tracks that didn’t make this list.

ORIGINAL SONG: Amy Winehouse – Rehab

RELEASE YEAR: 2007
By far the most non-hip hop song on this list though that isn’t to say that Jay Z doesn’t remix songs from the pop charts.  The remix for the late Amy Winehouse‘s biggest hit, Rehab, came as the Jiggaman was between albums Kingdom Come & American Gangster releasing all while serving as the Def Jam CEO & President.

ORIGINAL SONG: 50 Cent – I Get Money

RELEASE YEAR: 2007
In reference to the repetitive (and annoying) “1-2-3” chant in the background of the ‘I Get Money’ remix, 50 Cent has gone on recording justifying the sound by noting that this remix featured the #1, #2, & #3 ranked rapper on the Forbes list from that time.

ORIGINAL SONG: Saigon – Come On Baby

RELEASE YEAR: 2007
Recorded in 2007 for then-trending rapper Saigon is ‘Come On Baby’; a Just Blaze-produced track that was shaped up to be one of the greatest second-chance opportunities ever in hip hop thanks largely to Jay-Z laying a verse on the official remix (bars that replaced Saigon’s third verse on the album version).

ORIGINAL SONG: Talib Kweli – Get By

RELEASE YEAR: 2003
For his biggest commercial hit, Talib Kweli inlisted the help of hip hop heavyweights Busta Rhymes & Snoop Dogg but most notably for current agenda Jay-Z.  Taking the first verse slot on the ‘Get By’ Remix, Hov used the opportunity to kick lyrics about good decision-making throughout life that are conscious and still relevant.

ORIGINAL SONG: R. Kelly – Fiesta

RELEASE YEAR: 2001
Opting to start the song off, Jay-Z (along with the gimmickly-named Boo and Gotti) provide the raps on the Fiesta remix for R. Kelly.  This track released years before the Best Of Both Worlds tour fiasco in 2004 that barely lasted a single month.

ORIGINAL SONG: Young Jeezy – Go Crazy

RELEASE YEAR: 2005
Now frequent collaborators, Jay-Z and Young Jeezy had to start somewhere and ‘Go Crazy’ was the first time the two appeared on a song together.  Jumping on this Don Cannon-produced track with very inspirational raps helped Jeezy’s first album, Thug Motivation 101, solidify itself as a classic.

ORIGINAL SONG: Kendrick Lamar – Bitch Don’t Kill My Vibe

RELEASE YEAR: 2013
This is one of those remixes that people generally know better than the original.  The fact that Kendrick Lamar was able to get some Jay-Z raps on a single from his debut album speaks highly of K Dot’s position in the genre.  Getting the man on a song isn’t an easy task — doubly so these days.

ORIGINAL SONG: Rick Ross – Hustlin

RELEASE YEAR: 2006
2006 was at a point in his career where Jay-Z was comfortable in his position as the king of stunt-tastic raps and that is on full display in the official remix of Rick Ross‘ first big hit record.  Comedian and former DJ at Hot 97 Cipha Sounds is credited with bringing this record up from Florida; telling Hov about it the day after a major holiday.

ORIGINAL SONG: Mya – Best Of Me

RELEASE YEAR: 2000
Mya tapped Jay-Z for a DJ Clue-mixed redux of her ‘The Best Of Me’ single; one of the rare remixes where the featuring artist has more than one verse.  Using an excerpt 1987 track called ‘Make the Music With Your Mouth Biz’ by Biz Markie at the end, this song was used as the lead single to Backstage: A Hard Knock Life music documentary soundtrack.

ORIGINAL SONG: Kanye West – Diamonds From Sierra Leone

RELEASE YEAR: 2005
WRITE-UP
The original title of this song was going to be ‘Diamonds Are Forever’ but since Jay-Z had a song on The Blueprint 2 called “Diamonds Is Forever”, Kanye changed the name of the track citing the titles being too similar. With quotable line after quotable line, the Jiggaman spit one of his best verses to the point that Kanye West chose to include this version in his album Late Registration and make the original a bonus track at the end.

The post 10 Of Jay-Z’s Best Remix Verses appeared first on The Source.

Sometimes music is all about the message, and in the case of Maryland duo Wolves & Sheep, the message they are conveying in the “Anti-Social Media Blues” video couldn’t be any clearer. No matter what vessel the message comes in, sometimes it’s necessary to pause and take a listen.

 “Anti-Social Media Blues” dives into the often-debated topic of the necessary evils involving social media and technology in today’s society. With lead emcee Tyler Durdin proudly sporting his Chuck D shirt, he dissects the climate of our technology dependent culture while, at the same time, recognizing the irony of needing it to get his message to the masses. 

“Social media gave everyone a voice, no matter how insignificant that voice is in the big scheme of things,” he says. “It makes us feel like we’re making a difference. Every day you’re bombarded with bizarre opinions, fake news articles and social commentary.

“When I spend too much time on social media, it actually depresses me,” he adds. “I’ve killed my Facebook account three times in the past five years and probably would’ve discontinued it forever if I didn’t have my own business and need to promote my music. Pretty ironic when you think about it. It’s a song about anti-social media that you have to promote using anti-social media.” 

Along with Che Baroch, who wrote the music for the funk-inspired track, Durdin drives home a message that is noticeably missing from the musical landscape. With a range of influences spanning from Prince and The Roots to Public Enemy and Earth, Wind & Fire, Wolves & Sheep can’t be boxed into a neat little package, but they can pack a punch with their socio-political commentary.

The post [Watch] Maryland Hip Hop Group Pens Anti-Social Media Rap with Strong Message appeared first on The Source.

After Kid Cudi released his 2015 album, Speedin’ Bullet 2 Heaven, he immediately took to Twitter to blast the marketing rep that had been in charge of integrating the album into the iTunes catalog. The album had been listed as Hip Hop, most likely to advertise smoothly along with the rest of his releases, but Cudi saw the album as definitively alternative. In reality, the album wasn’t the greatest, but that’s not an epithet iTunes readily allows to describe genre.

What Cudi was trying to do was more noble; expand into uncharted waters beyond his typical classification of genre, yes, for his fans but more so, for himself. That’s why he had ventured into a foreign soundscape to begin with; throwing himself head first into dramatically stripped down indie-rock renditions and singsongy stabs at folk. But for all of its unbridled ambition, Speedin’ Bullet 2 Heaven is all too inundated with lo-fi strumming and (literal) Beavis and Butt-Head grumblings. At 26 tracks in length, it feels like an under-produced effort that drags its feet until the rubber treading is well worn-out. When compared to his collaborative 2012 release with Dot da Genius, WZRD, the direction of his 2015 alternative attempt isn’t actually all that surprising. But when juxtaposed with Billboard smothering hits from his debut like “Day ‘n’ Nite” and “Pursuit of Happiness,” the difference couldn’t be more stark.

And in the mind of Kid Cudi, that’s precisely the point. He’s an artist that grows visibly bored with fame and drugs, so it’s logical he’d start to strip off additional layers of polish that awarded him such pronounced acclaim to begin with. While diehard Cudi fans identify deeply with his personal tribulations and willingly support new iterations of his music, traditional fans that lean more towards radio-pop and and  traditional Hip Hop will continue to feel estranged from projects like Speedin’ Bullet 2 Heaven. At its best, the album actually does hit a few high-water marks, showcasing an endearing level of sentiment with a memorable hook or two. The title track, “Speedin’ Bullet 2 Heaven” is the standout, slowly waxing and waning over synths and familiar boom bap drums to create an indisputably heartfelt and anthemic nod to the twists and turns of life. An impassioned Cudi croons:

“Oh if I crash, oh if I crash/ Or if I land, no matter the case/ I’m all smiles, I’m all smiles/ I’ve traveled for miles, miles and miles/ For the love in the core, love in the core…”

But the high-points don’t last all that long. At its worst, the album actually includes rehearsal demos of tracks that already sounded a lot like rehearsal demos to begin with. This leads to a strange abyss of fledgling B-sides that by and large, test a listener’s endurance instead of rewarding them for listening in the first place.

All of this being said, most of us still stick around with Cudi because we know that deep down, beyond the intentional discord, Cudi is an artist of genius, even if routinely tortured and malcontent.

To affirm our faith in Cudder, we’ve compiled some of the tracks that best display the remarkable range of his artistry. Some of these tracks are singles, some are remixes plucked from unofficial mixtapes that haven’t ever seen a formal release. They all display a profoundly versatile artist, one who ultimately does have the potential to bend and break genre according to the whim of his latest project:

 (1) Santigold ft. KiD CuDi – Find A Way (Remix)

This synth-laden approach to Santigold’s “Find A Way” finds Cudi rapping over a beat by Switch and Sinden, simultaneously capturing the infectious rhythm of “Drop It Like It’s Hot” but infused with an electronic ethos. Cudi’s contribution is short and sweet, perfectly showcasing how good Cudi can sound over something that’s both bassy and brooding.

(2) Highs N’ Lows

“Highs N’ Lows” was recorded in those humble years before Cudi found the limelight. The track is recorded over Bob Dylan’s original “Lay Lady Lay” and is one of our earliest examples of Cudi’s melancholy made accessible with a pop-friendly hook. His persistent standing as “lonely stoner” has earned him legions of fans and this track helped to set the stage well before Cudi hit the airwaves.

(3) Memories ft. David Guetta

The star-studded collaborative effort, “Memories” with David Guetta is perhaps Cudi’s most successful international dance effort. The party-centric hook rides out over thumping bass that’s engineered to move the masses, leading the song to chart in practically two dozen countries. Play this song back to back with “Edge Of The Earth/Post Mortem Boredom” and try to argue that Cudi’s not the most versatile rapper working today.

 (4) All Talk ft. LCD Soundsystem, Chip Tha Ripper & Christian Bale

With LCD Soundsystem reunited at last and headlining Coachella, James Murphy’s supergroup is attracting enormous attention as the world’s most sought after act. “All Talk” finds Kid Cudi rapping seamlessly over their 2010 smash “Dance Yrself Clean” and exhibiting a flawless marriage between Cudi and just the right amount of synthesizer.

(5) Speedin’ Bullet 2 Heaven

The aforementioned title track from Speedin’ Bullet 2 Heaven is generally the most successful example of Cudi’s commitment to breaking down strictly linear conceptions about his work. A few repeated lines create a skeletal yet precise melody that whisks you far away into the warm embrace of the perfect lullaby. It’s enough to suggest that maybe genre needs Cudi more than Cudi needs genre after all.

Visuals by Richie Williamson

The post A Look Inside The Genius Mind Of Kid Cudi appeared first on The Source.

In this tumultuous social climate, where topics often revolve around human rights protests, police brutality, vocal hate groups on social media and the fear of terrorism being instilled by the media, it is officially “cool” to be socially active and “woke.” The opinions of the public matter more than ever in this digital age, especially when a viral, negative social media post has the ability to make or break businesses and politicians alike. When rappers speak out on the big issues, activism gets a cool makeover and the youth join in, but some artists are still seemingly afraid of having the responsibility the power of their words bring. Is it fair to make rappers the new social leaders?

With all the police shootings of unarmed minorities in the past couple of years, social media users demanded high profile artists to speak out against the injustice and were enraged when some prominent members of the rap elite remained silent. Rappers like J Cole and The Game were commended for their powerful musical tributes to the victims and their efforts to spread awareness of police brutality while others protected their financial interests and brands by not rocking the boat.

Beyonce sparked outrage with her performance of “Formation” during the 2016 Superbowl half-time show. Protestors argued she was using her performance as a platform for the “Black agenda,” but in doing so, she sparked an important conversation about the power given to our police forces and their abuse of it.

During the current Presidential campaign, the question of candidate endorsement is raised routinely in interviews because fans are eager to know who their idols are supporting. This proves the power of the “raptivist” and highlights the weight of their political opinions. Pop culture icons and their endorsements are arguably one of the reasons behind the success of President Obama during past elections. He used social media to rally support from the youth and appeared on many popular TV talk shows alongside celebrities to get his policy ideas heard.

Since he was elected as President of the United States, Obama has also invited several rappers and entertainers to the White House, making it clear he is a fan of the genre.

Run the Jewels rapper Killer Mike is helping Presidential candidate Bernie Sanders in his bid for the title. His endorsement has gained Sanders a spot on many urban media sites and publications.

Artists like Michael Jackson (MJ) and Bob Marley regularly spoke out about poverty, political unrest and racism in their music, and MJ was known for his progressive-message videos. Music transcends culture and social class due to its availability, therefore it is one of the most important platforms for social change. The ability to create a catchy hook or a beat is all part and parcel with spreading positivity or triggering a debate.

Thankfully, it is now becoming cool again to use this platform as a stage for social issues instead of just sex, drugs and material possessions. For example, Kendrick Lamar’s song “Alright” has become the unofficial soundtrack to the Ferguson protests last year. It struck a chord with people and made them feel hopeful in times of despair while empowering the community at the same time.

Authenticity and having a voice have always been important elements for a successful rapper. Fans want to know their story and relate to their struggles, which is why ghostwriting is an issue for their credibility, something we saw with Meek Mill’s reaction to the news that Drake doesn’t write all of his bars.

Fans obviously don’t like it when rappers stay silent on major issues like poverty, racism and police profiling. The new wave of conscious rappers filled the void commercial rap created. The youth want to be counted and respected, instead of seeing degrading misrepresentations of themselves in music videos. When a rapper chooses to use his or her power for the benefit of the people, their influence goes a long way.

It’s amazing to see so many politically active rappers and entertainers in today’s generation. Hopefully, their involvement in protests for the issues that really matter will motivate a renewed popularity for activism and spark a further civil rights movements to help those in need.

Rap is a powerful medium for change, but artists are flawed human being like everyone else. We cannot expect them to shoulder the responsibility of leading social progress alone, therefore thorough research into political candidates before voting is crucial. Hold politicians accountable for their actions or inaction. Be confident enough to have an opinion, despite what celebrities are saying, and like the say goes: “Be the change you want to see in the world.”

The post Rise Of The Raptivist: The Role Social Commentary Plays For Change appeared first on The Source.

We’ve now had well over a month to let The Life of Pablo knock around our speakers, so we can dive into some of the more overlooked moments of lyrical nuance found deeper within the album; certain peaks, valleys and subtle utterances, which may have largely escaped listeners thus far.

Admittedly, while Kanye West did explicitly forbid outlets like Pitchfork and the New York Times from commenting on his albums, it looks like a renowned Hip Hop publication (like The Source) was able to escape Ye’s auxiliary editorial critique relatively unscathed.

That being said, we’ve compiled some of the most underrated lyrical moments from The Life of Pablo. While content from the album wasn’t quite as political and poignant as found in older ‘Ye standouts like “Jesus Walks,” “Diamonds from Sierra Leone,” “Blood on the Leaves” and “New Slaves,” there are plenty of hidden gems tucked amid the rubble. For the sake of editorial clarity, we’ve omitted lauded contributions from featured artists like Chance The Rapper (whose “I mean I f*ck with your friends/but damn, Gina” reference to cult classic TV series Martin on “Ultralight Beam” would have otherwise qualified), as well as the entirety of Desiigner’s standout, hushed and rolling verse on “Father Stretch My Hands, Pt.2.”

Let’s not forget the ubiquitous taunting and hollering from Swizz Beatz, who absolutely saturates “Famous,” possibly emboldening Kanye with enough bravado to ultimately deliver his “I made that b*tch famous” line about Taylor Swift. If anything, Swizz does receive an honorable mention for delivering such an emphatic performance across the track. Without further ado, let’s turn up the volume and tune in.

 1.) “30 Hours” is a track reminiscent of Kanye’s “Last Call” on The College Dropout. The instrumental gives us the perfect canvas to receive a practically spoken word reflection and lyrical backstory on Kanye’s ex-girlfriend that’s so anecdotal and hilarious, it just can’t be fiction: “Got a hotel room, three-stars for you/ You call down for an omelet/ Girl it’s 5 in the morning/ You realize we at the DoubleTree, not the Aria/ Only thing open is Waffle House, girl don’t start with me.” These words, so far removed from rap music’s typical glamour, are somehow perfect and seem to have been overlooked by popular media to this point.

 2.) “Real Friends” was one of the first early releases from the album, dropping right off a Soundcloud page and reverberating instantly across the Internet. A few lines from the song shed light on Kanye’s vulnerability, despite his fame: “I had a cousin that stole my laptop that I was f*ckin’ b*tches on/ Paid that n**ga 250 thousand just to get it from him/ Real friends.” Something about the line is so stripped down it seems to resonate with anyone owning a MacBook. Kanye goes on to double-back and references this line again toward the end of the album on “No More Parties in LA.” “And as far as real friends, tell all my cousins I love ‘em/ Even the one that stole the laptop/ You dirty m*therf*cker.” There’s nothing more satisfying than coming full circle.

3.) On “Feedback,” a purposefully distorted beat serves as a call to attention. Kanye uses his refrain to acknowledge police brutality and flip it into an ironically catchy hook: “Hands up/we just doing what the cops taught us.” He utters the line a few more times and concludes with the fatalistic: “Hands up, Hands up/ Then the cops shot us.” The album as a whole avoids political commentary, so this line is a standout.

4.) “Freestyle 4” is just what it sounds like, a rambling track so evocative and ridiculous, it’s caught between the perfect and detestable. As Kanye slides into an entirely unhindered stream of boozy yet otherwise unadulterated consciousness, he ponders some of life’s most pressing questions: “What if we f*cked right in the middle of this m*therf*ckin’ dinner table?/ What if we just f*cked at the Vogue party/ Would we be the life of the whole party?/ Shut down the whole party/ Would everybody start f*ckin’?/ Would everybody start f*ckin’?” Considering the deep sociological implications of his quandary, you can’t blame him for asking.

5.)  Finally on “Wolves,” we receive enough poetic verses and Biblical resonance to make up for any transgressions experienced on “Freestyle 4.” Toward the end of the track, the levels finally quiet down and the howling falls away, leaving us alone with Frank Ocean to deliver us home: “There’s light with no heat/ it cooled out, it’s cool out/ Life is precious/ We found out, we found out…” Even though it’s widely rumored Kanye is still toying with the track, as far as we’re concerned, it’s a perfect resolution.

The post The Most Underrated Lyrics from The Life of Pablo appeared first on The Source.

Twenty-five years ago today the cult-classic crime thriller, New Jack City, arrived in theaters across America. The story of the rise and fall of Nino Brown and the Cash Money Brothers has continued inspired Hip Hop culture for a quarter century and continues to permeate the culture that made it a success.

New Jack City came about at a pivotal time, in 1991. Hip Hop was still a fledging music genre and culture, looking to officially legitimize itself in the eyes mainstream America. In addition, the blaxploitation film genre had been defunct for over a decade, leaving a gaping hole in “Black Hollywood”. New Jack City was a harbinger of the resurgence of Black actors, writers and filmmakers in Hollywood, as well as the crystallization of Hip Hop’s synergistic capabilities.

The film also catapulted actors like Wesley Snipes who played the lead role as the morally barren kingpin Nino Brown  and Chris Rock stick-up-kid-turned-crackhead-informant “Pookie”, into stardom. The film’s director Mario Van Peebles also made his directorial debut with the film, which he starred in as well. Ice T who also played a major role in New Jack City as NYPD detective “Scotty Appleton”, spoke with Rock recently on his “Final Level“ podcast about some of the behind-the-scenes of the cult classic.

Chris Rock: At the time, you and I were the most popular people in the cast, really, just ’cause we’d done s**t.

Ice-T: We’d done things.

Chris Rock: Nobody knew Mario [Van Peebles]. Nobody knew Wesley [Snipes].

Ice-T: Wesley had done Major League.

Chris Rock: No one knew “G-Money,” you know, Allen Payne.

Ice-T: That was what got me confident enough to act.

Chris Rock: And you were actually making money. [Laughs] I was broke.

…

Ice-T: … You know, it was an interesting experience. New Jack City was a new-jack movie. The director was a new-jack.

Chris Rock: The producers were new-jacks, new-jack actors, new-jack soundtrack. Remember we kept runnin’ out of money? There was a couple of times, while we were filming, we were like, “This s**t is getting shut down.” Like, the chase on the bikes was [suppose to be] a car-chase. But it turned into a bike-chase; we had no money! [Laughs] Somebody had to think fast.

The film was shot on an $8 million budget, and premiered in the 1991’s Sundance Film Festival back on January 17, 1991. The film would later release nationally on March 8, 1991, raking in $7,039,622 in opening weekend sales — and later bcoming the highest grossing indie film of 1991 with $47,624,253 domestically.

With the success of New Jack City ever-apparent, a barrage of Black hood crime thrillers began to flood the market. Boyz N The Hood dropped several months later in 1991, Juice and South Central both in 1
992, Menace II Society in 1993, Above The Rim  in 1994, New Jersey Drive and Dead Presidents in 1995, Set It Off in 1996 and many more films throughout the decade and beyond.

The film also had a longstanding effect on the music industry. Perhaps the most notable example is brother Bryan “Birdman” and Ronald “Slim” Williams‘ Cash Money Records label, a blatant reworking of Nino Brown’s “Cash Money Brothers” gang in the film. In addition, Lil Wayne‘s solo album series Tha Carter is not only his last name, but an homage to “The Carter”,  Nino’s crack house fortress in the film, as well as name drops Nino in his 2010 single “I’m Single”.

In fact, Nino Brown has become a regularly referenced movie character in rap lyrics for decades. A simple search of “Nino Brown” on RapGenius shows over 4000 references to the character by artists from all over world. It’s safe to say Nino and New Jack City will continue to inspire generations to come, and if you disagree…

For more in-depth info on what went into creating New Jack City, check out this oral history of New Jack City from the film’s screenwriter Barry Michael Cooper with Ambrosia for Heads here.

The post New Jack City: 25 Years of “Nino Brown” appeared first on The Source.

On this date in 1991, an undetermined number of Los Angeles Police officers beat motorist Rodney King 54 times with batons following a simple speeding violation. All four of the officers that were tried for the case were acquitted, which was the sparking of the wick that led to the 1992 Los Angeles Riots.

Black men have been catching beatdowns on American streets ever since there were police departments, but what made King’s story unique at the time ws that someone secretly videotaped the entire incident and managed to get the recording to the “proper” authorities unscathed.

Even with the golden evidence in black and white motion picture from concerned citizen George Holliday that this is a regular occurence for Black men when encountered by police, even for minor offenses, the beating was shunned by the justice system, clearing all of the officers of any wrongdoing. The frustration led to the almost total destruction of Los Angeles and the unwarranted beating of truck driver Reginald Dennis in the midst of the riots.

A quarter century later, cases like King’s don’t end with million dollar settlements. Michael Brown, Sandra Bland, Aiyana Jones and Tamir Rice are all perfect examples of what fates Black men, women and children possibly face when confronted by police. It’s almost as if the cops are doing it for TV.

The post The Rodney King LAPD Beating Video 25 Years Later: Has Anything Really Changed? appeared first on The Source.

With the Oscars fast approaching, all of the discussion surrounding the Academy’s lack of recognition for deserving people of color who have excelled in film and television has brought us to another slightly overlooked topic worth revisiting: women of color coming together to break down the Hollywood typecasting barrier one role at a time.

It’s no secret that typecasting is an all too prevalent reality for many in Hollywood and women of color in the industry seem to have been particularly singled out to bear the brunt of the burden, but quite as kept, the strides being made to overcome this obstacle are nothing short of amazing.

An integral part of Hollywood not being able to downplay the success of these women has been also having women of color in the driver’s seat as creators, directors and producers. Women like Shonda Rhimes, Mara Brock Akil, Ava DuVernay and Gina Prince-Bythewood are playing pivotal roles in bringing films and programming to life that foster a sense of unity, excellence and unapologetic pride in diversity within the Hollywood culture. Check the social media timelines of some of the most successful women of color in Hollywood and you’ll find them not only promoting their own projects, but also publicly supporting their fellow sisters in film and television regularly.

On the television circuit, actresses like Kerry Washington, Tracee Ellis-Ross, Viola Davis, Priyanka Chopra, Uzo Adoba and Gabrielle Union are changing the face of prime time television and alternative programming by using the very essence of who they are to bring stories to life in a way that has been absent from the small screen for far too long.

Rather than being pegged to fill the role of the “token” actress of color or being required to minimalize their ethnic features to better suit the prime time powers that be, these beautiful women are gracing our television and computer screens on a weekly basis in powerful leading roles that either subtly or boldly represent their various cultural backgrounds in the nearly every frame. From Viola Davis as a top-notch attorney on How To Get Away With Murder, to Tracee Ellis-Ross as a highly-educated, yet well rounded mother and wife on Blackish to Aunjanue Ellis as an FBI director on Quantico, you’ll be hard pressed to turn on your television during the most watched hours of programming and not see a range of strong representation of women of color.

But it doesn’t end on the small screen.

Although the Academy continues to deliberately exclude a large majority of our talented film stars from their secret society of public recognition under the false belief that we somehow require their validation in order to push forward, it’s pretty impossible to dim a light that will shine bright even in the darkest of  shadows. In recent years, our women of color have taken to the big screen to step out of their comfort zones and done so with flying colors. Angela Bassett as the Secret Service Director in this year’s Olympus Has Fallen sequel London Has Fallen, Jennifer Lopez as a vengeful mother in 2015’s Lila & Eve, and Lupita Nyong’o as Maz Kanata in the highest grossing film in U.S. history, Star Wars: The Force Awakens, are just a few of the standout roles played by women of color in recent years. In 2016, even more of our women will shine in some of Hollywood’s most anticipated major motion pictures including Leslie Jones in Ghostbusters, Alexandra Shipp in X-Men Apocalypse and Viola Davis and Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje in Suicide Squad.

An essential part to ensuring that these and other women of color continue to thrive in film and television is the way that they all publicly celebrate each other’s achievements, even when the world drops the ball. Who can forget Taraji P. Henson wildly cheering on Regina King as she won her first Emmy Award last year? Or Viola Davis boldly calling out the lack of roles available for African-American women during her Emmy speech? Or Kerry Washington raving about the cast of The Wiz on Twitter? With people of color constantly being pit against each other at every turn, the practice of supporting those whom society would rather have us view as our competition than our ally is key….and we could all take our cue from these fearless women who lead by example using that very principle.

Image Credit: Getty

The post MissUnderstood: How Women Of Color Are Uniting To Break Down The Hollywood Typecasting Barrier appeared first on The Source.

A particular strength Kanye West has as an artist/producer is the uncanny knack of pushing, bending and breaking boundaries in hip hop with a pop edge. It can be argued no artist in hip hop has been more audacious to take risks musically and lyrically, all the while making West a pop culture phenomenon and critical darling.

Scour through his catalog and you will see that West has curated a variety of different musical styles and blended genres to shape his albums. He took soul and sampled/sped it up into hip hop form on The College Dropout and added gloss, strings, orchestral music and a variety of genres blended together with Late Registration. On Graduation, the goal was to make international stadium anthems while still pushing for pop success. 808’s & Heartbreak, My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy and Yeezus all featured sounds drastically different from their predecessors: 808’s electro R&B, MBDTF’s maximal combo of the previous four and Yeezus’ minimalist, EDM-meets-Hip Hop helped prove West was more than just a rapper—he was an all-time great. And when 2015 came and went without a West album (after much anticipation with releases such as “Only One” “FourFiveseconds” and “All Day”) one principle question went into the minds of a lot of ‘Ye and casual music fans—what will (after being named So Help Me God and SWISH) Waves really sound like?

Wishful thinking tells us we can expect West to make an album we aren’t anticipating; like he did with his previous works. It’s hard to identify which direction West may lean on now because his releases in the past year have been eclectic. “Only One” is listed as soul, where the legendary Paul McCartney‘s history of crafting hits is all over it, which gives way to the mainstream feel of “FourFiveseconds,” an obvious pop track (and another collab with McCartney, with Rihanna). Acoustic guitar driven, it was tailored specifically to the charts with little hip hop influence, which isn’t like West at all. At this point, many fans began to voice concern West’s new album would be an offering of pop-driven hits on steroids.

“All Day,” released in spring of last year, was immediately greeted with optimism because it was modern and much more hip hop. True to form, “All Day” is a trap song blended in with drill and Travis Scott-esque sound effects. With that key fusion, the record took off, reaching number 15 on the Billboard pop charts. Unlike West’s more recent releases, the hook appeared to be catered toward the youth, something he hadn’t done since perhaps “Can’t Tell Me Nothing.”

“All day, n***a

How long you n***as ball? All day, n***a

How much time you spent at the mall? All day, n***a

How many runners do you got on call? All day, n***a

Swish, swish, how long they keep you in court? All day, n***a

Take you to get this fly? All day, n***a

Tell your P.O. how-how long you been high? All day, n***a

You already know I’m straight from the Chi, all day, n***a

South, south, south side! All day, n***a”

“Wolves” featuring Vic Mensa came after, which had a step in the direction of the more experimental work West crafted with Yeezus, but it wasn’t well received. To take a step back at this stage and observe, you can see West isn’t one to utilize a rigorously modern sound nor a pop one. Nonetheless, those choices as singles were gutsy and interesting to say the least.

Looking at the last few singles, especially the ones released the past couple weeks, may give the true direction of what Waves will possibly sound like. “FACTS” produced by Metro Boomin and Southside is a trap record with signature 808’s and rolling hi-hats. An interesting part in the song is West taking a flow similar to Drake on “Jumpman”, which was a widely popular song by the end of 2015. A week later, West released “Real Friends,” a much more solemn approach with West becoming introspective about friendship. At the end of that track is “No More Parties in LA,” a collaboration with producer Madlib and Kendrick Lamar. When the full track for “No More Parties” debuted January 18, it quickly delighted fans as it featured the sound and lyricism that made West the most dynamic producer/rapper of the mid 2000’s. The two beat-smiths [West and Madlib] have a knack for sampling, and it would be enchanting if West could feature more of this (a.k.a. what made him famous) on Waves. Knowing West, that idea isn’t even remotely realistic though.

The songs West has offered from this new opus have been as diverse and as challenging as it is to compare to his previous works. Some are in the pocket of what he’s done and others are extremely left field. Either way, we know West will do his very best to continue to shift the boundaries and push limits. Only on February 11, 2016 will we get the final verdict of what powerful sound Waves will be.

The post The Countdown To Waves: What Sound Is Kanye Going For This Time? appeared first on The Source.

Yesterday [Friday, December 18] we unleashed what we thought were the 25 Best Hip Hop/Rap songs of the year, ranging from deep cuts from guys like Rick Ross and Lupe Fiasco to some of the ill smashes of 2015, including Drake‘s “accidental” hits and Big Sean‘s comeback anthem.

It wouldn’t be right if we didn’t acknowledge the great Hip Hop that dropped this year that wasn’t “rap” per se, but still left a lasting impact on 2015. Our Hip Hop/R&B list acknowledges great work from guys like Ty Dolla $ign, The Weeknd, the year’s breakout star Bryson Tiller and more. Don’t sleep on them! Some of the best music of the year is on this list.

We’re presenting the 15 Best Hip Hop/R&B songs we feel defined 2015, from “songs of the summer” to anthems dropping early this year that still ring true in December. On the flip side, there are absolutely numerous records that hurt us to leave off—and we’re 100 percent positive you’ll let us hear about it.

On Monday, we’re diving into the 25 Best Hip Hop/Rap albums and the 15 Best Hip Hop/R&B albums of the year. Oh, the debates are just getting started.

Enough with the small talk, let’s get into it.

The post The Source Presents: The 15 Best Hip Hop/R&B Songs of 2015 appeared first on The Source.

It’s 8:00 pm on a Saturday evening in Dallas, Texas and in the midst of the normal hoopla that engulfs the weekend, groups of dedicated fans are strategically planning their road to the Dallas House of Blues.

Why?

In less than 24 hours, Fayetteville, North Carolina’s own Jermaine Cole will touch down in the city, along with his Dreamville team, to kick off his annual “Dollar And A Dream” tour for the third year in a row. Through the development of a creative strategy that involves allowing the most die hard of fans to see J.Cole and the team do what they do best for the bargain price of a single dollar, Dreamville has led a re-birth of sorts in terms fan appreciation, while also providing the music industry with a sobering visual reminder about the power of the true fan.

An ode to Cole’s classic Friday Night Lights mixtape, 2015’s Dollar and A Dream tour resulted in an unprecedented turn out in each of the 4 major cities it hit, with a large number of fans arriving at the assumed venues the night before at every stop to ensure their entry. Because the venue of each show is not actually revealed until Cole himself sends out a tweet on the day of the concert with the confirmed location, seasoned Dollar And A Dream fans now take it upon themselves to begin researching possible venue locations in advance in order to narrow down their choices and arrive at the predicted location. Several groups of fans even divide themselves between two possible locations in case one of their guesses is incorrect.

And the kicker?

This year’s most dedicated group of Dreamvillians hit the nail on the head each and every time, in each and every city on the schedule, with hundreds of fans already in line at the correct venue hours before J.Cole or his team had even arrived in the city, let alone sent out the tweet confirming a location.

The Cole frenzy has long been “a thing,” but seems to have exploded significantly with the anticipation of the release of his 2014 Forest Hills Drive album at the end of last year. The instant success of the album was in stark contrast to the gradual growth of Cole’s popularity as an artist that began during his days as an undergrad at St. Johns University in Queens, NY. His close friend and classmate Ibrahim “IB” Hamad quickly recognized Cole’s talent and took the reigns as his unofficial manager after hearing an early recording of him rapping over the infamous Kanye West-produced “Grammy Family” beat. Shortly after, IB convinced a somewhat-hesitant Cole to let him help spread the word about his music and from there, the makings of Dreamville began.

After years of putting in work from every angle possible while on his mission to bring something organic but undeniably legendary to the top of the rap totem pole and to hip hop fans in general, a 24-year-old newly signed J.Cole embarked on his music industry journey as most new comers do: with everything to prove and seemingly nothing to lose. But today, at just 6 years in, it seems Roc Nation’s first born has figured out what many in his shoes take a lifetime to accept, if ever: there’s no need to prove what’s already understood and can’t be denied…and there’s actually much at stake to lose if you’re not careful. Priding himself on coming into the industry not only as an insanely talented lyricist but also a budding producer who would soon transform into a master of both crafts, Cole is recognized amongst his peers, fans and his Dreamville family as a genius of sorts. And what’s more, he’s well aware of what he brings to the table and contagiously confident in what he has brewing beyond the scope of what those outside of his tight-knit circle can grasp as realistically achievable, so much so that it’s never long before his whole team is on board and working to bring his latest vision to life.

Less than a month before dropping his third studio album 2014 Forrest Hills Drive in December of 2014 following the unveiling of a surprise release date, Cole hit the road for a slightly unconventional promo tour where he visited several college campuses, radio program directors and other groups of pop culture influencers to talk about the album and even give some of them an early listen. The most memorable moment of the promo run occurred when a long-time Dreamville supporter from Texas tweeted Cole requesting that he come to Dallas and he replied by securing her address before showing up at her house hours later with his team to give her a first listen of the album. His final stop on the nearly month-long journey was in his hometown of Fayetteville, NC, where he invited 2 groups of fans into his adolescent home to preview the album exclusively.

Three days after 2014 FHD was released, Cole embarked on a sporadic fan appreciation tour, appropriately coined “Fuck Money, Spread Love (F$SL),” where he visited unsuspecting fans in several cities to show his gratitude for their support. The first stop on the journey was NYC, where Cole made his rounds throughout the city to autograph hard copies of the album for fans who tweeted out photos proving that they’d purchased it and sent him their locations. He continued the impromptu cross-country trip for 5 days, doing everything from take groups of his fans to lunch, to popping up at their jobs, to treating them to movies.

He also made headlines when he interrupted his hectic Dollar and A Dream III tour schedule to attend the high school graduation ceremony of a young fan who’d asked him to be there 3 years earlier. Cole made a deal with the fan that if she got accepted into a 4-year-university, he’d hold up his end of the deal and be present to see her walk across the stage. The young fan would later go on to turn his personalized message of congratulations into a tattoo.

Needless to say, the phrases “promo tour” and “fan appreciation” take on a whole new….and much more valuable….meaning where the Dreamville brand is concerned.

From the beginning of Cole’s career and Dreamville’s inception, the fans have always been kept at the forefront of the priority list and never too far out of the loop. What’s more, Cole has mastered the ability to create timeless, classic hip hop that genuinely resonates with every fan from the teenager navigating through adolescence, to the young adult struggling to enjoy youth without making life-altering mistakes, to the fully grown man basking in the best and worst life has to offer. As a result, he’s built one of the most solid, genuine and dedicated fan bases of any artist in any music
genre today.

In the midst of Cole winning over thousands of new fans every month and taking advantage of the historic success of his 2014 Forest Hills Drive album in 2015 (he became the first rap artist in 25 years to go platinum without a single feature this year), the other members of the Dreamville roster have made sure to keep him on his toes. Strong enough to have built solid individual fan bases of their own, yet humble enough to promote Cole and each other as much as they do themselves, Dreamville artists Bas, Cozz and Omen have become instrumental in the brand’s mounting success.

Imagine a Paris-born, Queens, NY native with an extraordinary ear for stretching meticulously-crafted beats beyond the realm of traditional hip hop as we know it by creating musical monologues through his flow and then using them as a platform for telling the stories that continue to shape his journey through young adulthood. Dreamville’s Bas fits this mold to a T. Making his way into the mix with his 2011 Quarter Water Raised Me Vol.1 mixtape, Bas has brought his growing fan base along for the ride as he continues to elevate at a pace that seems to have him destined for hip hop greatness. Settling comfortably into a one-of-a-kind style all his own, Bas made a memorable mark on the hip hop world in 2014 with several fan-favorites from his debut album Last Winter. Laid back enough to keep audiences vibing with him throughout his sets but turned up enough to leave them wondering what’s next, 2015 saw Bas snag a solo spot in the star-studded line up for Jay-Z’s “Tidalx1020” concert and receive the reception of a rap superstar at this year’s Budweiser Made In America Festival. Bas is sure to make a believer out of even more music lovers with the upcoming release of his sophomore album Too High To Riot, but in the meantime, do yourself a favor and check out his latest single
“Night Job.”

Perhaps the most unassuming backstory of the Dreamville crew outside of J.Cole’s, Omen’s career path has taken his fans on a journey that they won’t soon forget any quicker than he will. Forming an unlikely teenage friendship with a fellow “rap nerd” who would find himself in the company of hip hop’s elite before either of them reached 25, Omen embarked on his musical escapade alongside Cole while working diligently to build his own fan base in the process. He quietly released his first mixtape titled Do The Right Thing in 2006, before following up with the appropriately titled Delayed in 2010. 2011 saw the release of his impressive Afraid Of Heights project that seemed to solidify his spot as force to be reckoned with among his talented peers and even featured a collaboration with a then newly-minted Kendrick Lamar, who had just begun gaining mainstream traction himself 4 months earlier with the release of his now-critically acclaimed debut album Section .80. In between his own projects, Omen remained an active part of continuing to push the Dreamville brand along with his own, stirring fan curiosity with impressive feature verses on J.Cole’s “The Badness” in 2009 and again on “Enchanted” in 2010.
Omen’s smooth yet amplified flow is vividly indicative of his Chi-Town roots, often drawing comparisons to the likes of Chicago rap veterans Common and Kanye West. By the time the self-proclaimed “Turn Down King” dropped his long-awaited debut album Elephant Eyes on July 21 of this year, anyone following the Dreamville movement was hip and listening at most and intrigued, at least. In November, Omen headlined his very first solo tour, leaving his mark on a handful of cities including New York, L.A. and of course, Chicago. At the close of his intimate NYC show, Omen stayed to snap photos and sign autographs for every single fan who asked. He even had a drink with a few fans before hitting the stage at his Dallas show.

As a fan, can you really buy a better $15 show ticket than that?

The youngest member of the pack, 22-year-old west coast emcee Cozz brings an undeniable skill set and infectious energy to the Dreamville brand, performing before crowds of thousands as if he’s a seasoned pro with years of experience under his belt. After officially becoming a member of the Dreamville family back in the summer of 2014, Cozz spent much of this year learning the ins and outs of tour life while continuing to captivate massive (and at times, unfamiliar) audiences with his fearless delivery of songs from his debut album Cozz and Effect. Since a description alone would hardly do Cozz’s sound justice, I’ll just recommend that you take a listen sometime in the near future and dare you not to find yourself at least on the brink of becoming a fan by the end of one run through. Or you can just keep watch for his upcoming release Nothin Personal, due out any day now.

Now the Dreamville president and still J.Cole’s manager, Ibrahim Hamad has worked with his team to craft the ultimate creative promo strategies for each of the label’s artists, leaving fans anticipating incentives with the release of each single, full project, or tour announcement. In addition to Cole’s unconventional promo tours, Bas’s first project was promoted in the form of a trailer inspired by ESPN’s “30 for 30” series, while Omen’s Elephant Eyes album was predicated by a hilarious “Love & Hip Hop” spoof featuring a who’s who of the Dreamville family including Cole himself, again tapping into mainstream minds and showing fans that attention is certainly being paid while continuing to keep the brand a safe distance from perils of popular culture.

Speaking of family, production and engineering-wise, a large majority of Dreamville’s projects are handled in-house by a combination of the artists themselves and a handful of immensely talented musical visionaries. Among them are Cole’s childhood friend Cedric Brown, Dreamville keyboard maestro Ron Gilmore, Cole’s right-hand producer Anthony “Elite” Parrino, producer Kaleb “KQuick” Rollins and engineer extraordinaire Juro “Mez” Davis; many of whom became a part of the Dreamville cohort early on. As a result, fans have become just as big of supporters of the “behind-the-scenes” Dreamville team as they are of the artists.

IB’s most recent stroke of creativity that led to a memorable hip hop moment in 2015 was the idea to have J.Cole and Kendrick Lamar record freestyles over instrumental versions of each other’s latest big records.
As a result, Cole delivered as only he can over Kendrick’s “Alright” instrumental, while Kendrick tackled Cole’s “A Tale of 2 Citiez,” with both artists dropping the songs for free on Black Friday.

On the numbers side of things, 2015 has been an unprecedented year for J.Cole and the Interscope-backed Dreamville family. The 2014 FHD tour clenched the number 1 spot on Billboard’s “hottest tours of the summer” list, raking in a cool $20.4 million in gross sales, with $16.4 million attained during the North American leg of the tour alone in a less-than-3-month time span. Ticket sales topped out at 570,000 for the 65-city tour, with sold out shows at notable venues such as NYC’s Madison Square Garden, L.A.’s Staples Center, and even a packed house of 15,000 in London’s infamous 02 arena. Outside of the booth, Cole was among some of the most iconic names in music to be announced as a co-owner of Jay Z’s TIDAL streaming service in March.  Later on in the year, he also partnered with high-end Swiss luxury brand Bally to help create his own line of boots and outerwear accessories, while IB recently announced the birth of Dreamville Films.

Showing no signs of slowing down as 2016 approaches, the Dreamville squad yet again sent a shockwave through their fan base with the surprise release of Revenge of the Dreamers II, in December. Making the release even more exciting for their supporters as only they can, the team unveiled ROTD2 through a series of cryptic social media efforts. The day before the release, each artist tweeted out a 1-888 number for fans to call and hear a screaming Dreamville team confirm that the project was on its’ way within the next few days. The following day, Cole made a rare Twitter appearance to request fans’ e-mail addresses before sending three lucky Dreamvillains the link to download ROTD2 early. A follow up compilation project to 2014’s “Revenge of the Dreamers,” the mixtape features impressive work from each of the Dreamville artists, along with cameos from their two newest signees; songstress Ari Lenox and North Carolina born lyricist Lute.

Dreamville also dominated the performance circuit as a collective in 2015. Whether together or apart, there has been a Dreamville presence at nearly every high profile concert or festival on the music industry radar. Their impressive run included: The 2014 Forest Hills Drive Tour, South By Southwest, Made In America, TidalxJCole, Neon Desert Festival, Soundset Festival, One Love Hip Hop Festival, Dollar and A Dream Tour III, Pemberton Festival, Tidalx1020 and Red Bull Sound Select.

Their final round of joint performances for this year came as the entire crew hit the streets of NYC for a surprise ROTD2 bar crawl – a series of three free pop up concerts at intimate venues throughout the city over the course of a 4-hour time span. Announcing the crawl on social media just hours before their first stop, the Dreamville wave yet again took over their fan base as fans scrambled to make it to at least one of the locations.

Oh, and if you thought Cole sat this one out or made a fly-by-night, 1-song cameo at the end of it all, think again.

Not only was he involved, he led the way as the entire Dreamville family took to the streets in between each performance, stopping for pizza and engaging with fans with such down-to-earth vibes that you’d never know they’d just dropped the most talked-about compilation project of 2015 a week before. The performances themselves were intentionally less of an actual concert and more of a Dreamville roster open mic night, with each of the artists (including a newly-signed Lute) taking to the venue stages one by one to perform, and then remaining on stage to play hype men for each other. A few fans even hopped on stage to rock with the team at each of the venues, with Cole, Bas, Cozz, Omen and IB all cheering them on as if they were Dreamville artists themselves.

Cole is set to close out the year with a NYE performance at Mandalay Bay’s Light Nightclub in Las Vegas before gearing up for the premiere of the 2014 Forest Hills Drive Homecoming Concert Special on HBO in January 2016, which will air a month before the entire Dreamville cohort gets back to it at L.A.’s Air + Style Festival in February.

The Dreamville team continues to put in the work necessary to push beyond the group think psyche that seems an all too common determinant of how today’s listeners digest music and reach the heart of each individual fan by building an unspoken, yet thoroughly understood, bond that will see listeners find relevancy, relatability and most importantly, authenticity in the music for years to come.

More than just becoming fans of the artists, their supporters have become fans of the movement.

Who’s to say what this seemingly unbreakable bond between this band of best friends-turned-business partners will evolve into over the next few years, but in this moment, there’s no denying that the Dreamville brand is leaving a collective imprint on the entertainment industry to rival that of those who set the standard before them. While certainly not the first or the only to build a dedicated fan base from the ground up, Dreamville is ahead of the curve among today’s music industry conglomerates in ensuring that the love received from their fans is constantly reciprocated, not only through their music, but through their business, their brotherhood and their fearless approach to the unconventional.

Dreamville has proven to be much more than just a brand made up of extraordinarily talented friends realizing their goals as a unit, but also the physical representation of a mindset personified through a combination of hard work, skill set and fearless pursuit of passion that is solidifying them as new leaders of their generation.

The post How J. Cole And Dreamville Revitalized Fan Culture With Just A Dollar & A Dream appeared first on The Source.

Yes, it’s that time of year. The holidays are here, the countdown to 2016 has begun, and we’re looking back at what was—and always is—a crazy 12 months in the world of Hip Hop.

How do we skim an entire year of music down to just 20 songs? Debates and shouting matches, that’s how. Younger Hip Hop staff and the OG’s debating music and going hard for the culture. The tracks selected need not have been a commercially released single, that’s one thing we agreed on. Here’s the criterion:

• Creativity

• Authentic To The Culture (Does It Bump In The Hood, Car, Club + House)

• Most Popular

• Replay Value & Timelessness

• Lyrical Quality

• Melody

• Production Quality

We’re presenting the 20 songs we feel defined 2015, from “songs of the summer” to anthems dropping early this year that still ring true in December.  On the flip side, there are absolutely numerous records that hurt us to leave off—and we’re 100 percent positive you’ll let us hear about it.

Enough with the small talk, let’s get into it.

The post The Source Presents: The 25 Best Hip Hop [Rap] Songs of 2015 appeared first on The Source.

When I tell Danny Seth that one day, while driving through the heart of Brooklyn, windows down, a passerby walked up to my driver’s side window to ask me if I was listening to Eminem, I expect him to be slightly annoyed. To his credit, my mentioning of that September afternoon was part of a larger, not-so-innocuous series of questions, one that often prompts rappers to purse their lips and truncate their responses in disdain. It was a necessary probe, though. How does he plan on evading the stereotypes and predispositions that automatically exist because he’s a White rapper from the UK rocking fashion-forward jeans? Chances are, it starts with his delivery, which pulls fewer punches with every song on Perception, his closely guarded reintroduction.

“Some people will see a piece of trash, some people will find their own things in there,” starts Seth, as he gets in depth about his album cover, which features the rapper perched comfortably in the corner of a white room, with a painting—or trash, depending on your lens—hanging on a nearby wall. The album itself plays much like its tracklist suggests. It’s one long story, detailing the journey Seth makes not just from UK misfit to American underground standout, but also from confused introvert to his current state of indifference, which explains why he’s so comfortable with people not all the way understanding the artwork of his first real opus. From the dark, stormy and abstract intro, down to the project’s boisterous flagship record, “I Arise Because,” Danny Seth weaves a relatable tale of anguish, that eventually gives way to immense self-appreciation and a raised level of confidence, the kind of triumphant arc he hopes his career also follows.

“I was very paranoid, I was hearing voices, I was very worried that I was about to lose everything,” starts Seth, over the phone, before elaborating that he once collapsed before a Glastonbury performance. It’s truly a wonder how far he’s come over the years since, establishing a presence on either side of the pond carving out a true lane for himself, one that begins to be clearly defined on Perception, but unlike most soul-searching missions, Perception is as enjoyable as it is pervasive.

“Writing is my way of dealing with it all,” says Seth, wispily, as our conversation begins to die down. He’s on to something, and he knows it.

The post Skyfall: Danny Seth Looks to Change ‘Perception’ With Dark, Prolific Album appeared first on The Source.

Like we always do it this time.

The first week of December in music is reserved for Grammy fever, incited by the foundation’s announcement of the year’s nominees. Excellence in Pop, R&B, Country, Rap and more are recognized, and everyone gets to soak in the experience until the winners are announced two months later, at February’s award show. Hip-Hop’s complicated relationship with The Grammys has been well documented for decades, especially as of late, when artists that many consider to be “Pop” find themselves nominated for core rap awards, most recently the controversy surrounding Iggy Azalea.

Naturally, in each category, there are always artists that feel–often accurately–that they’ve been snubbed out of a nomination, and they take that sentiment very seriously. Just ask J. Cole, who held up a “F*ck the Grammys” sign while on tour in 2013 after his sophomore album, Born Sinner, didn’t receive a Best Rap Album nomination.

As we peruse the R&B and Rap categories, here are the people that we feel should’ve been nominated–but weren’t.

The post It’s Debate Time: Who Got Snubbed In the 2016 Grammy Nominations? appeared first on The Source.

If you let Bryson Tiller tell you how to go from relatively unknown regional favorite to nationally beloved major label signee, you’ll probably pull your hair out, then go try and do it yourself. “It was easy for me. All I did was make a song that was good,” says the Louisville, Kentucky native, as if he can hardly believe there aren’t R&B sensations popping out of every zip code in Middle America. That song that was good, “Don’t,” a slow-burning guide to leaving the wrong guy for the right one that takes no prisoners—“Girl he only f*cked you over ‘cause you let him”—racked up 7 million plays in a few short months, but that number could’ve easily been zero. “I uploaded it to Soundcloud once, and it got like 300 plays the first day and I was like ‘I’m taking this off, nobody’s really messing with this’.” When the song vanished from the internet, a friend made him aware of how popular it had gotten on the University of Kentucky’s campus and Tiller, still not thinking much of it, re-uploaded the song. “Don’t” now sits at 27 million plays on Soundcloud, and has cracked the Billboard R&B chart’s Top 40.

Bryson Tiller
“Sorry Not Sorry” (prod. Timbaland)
Trap Soul (2015)

Tiller was born and raised in Louisville, Kentucky, which is where he still resides with his 2-year old daughter and her mother, who provided much of the inspiration for records like “Don’t,” “Exchange,” and the litany of R&B records on Trap Soul—his first post-record deal project—that are deliberately void of excessively foul and misogynistic lyrics. When I pointed out a line from “Exchange” (Lord please save her for me/Do this one favor for me) that has quickly become a ubiquitous Instagram caption for girls that, more often than not, wish the men in their life spoke about them in a similar manner, Tiller mentions that his relationship with the two most important girls in his life provides him more than enough inspiration.

This is an abridged version of this article. To read the full story, grab your copy of our 2015 Holiday Issue here.

The post Songs In the Key Of Love: Bryson Tiller Prepares an R&B Takeover appeared first on The Source.

On Jay Z‘s 46th birthday, we’re taking a look back at Source issue #248, in which we celebrated the 10-year anniversary of what’s widely regarded as Jay Z’s best album, The Blueprint, his 6th album (or 5th, if you want to get technical and exclude The Dynasty). Aside from the historical implications–this album infamously dropped on 9/11–The Blueprint represents a pivotal time in Hip-Hop for many reasons. The Jay Z-Nas beef. The birth of Kanye West and Just Blaze as production superstars. The iconic records (“Izzo,” “Song Cry”). Today, we decided to take a look back at our 10-year commemoration of the album that forever changed Jay Z’s career, and Hip-Hop.

You Must Love Me
We commemorate the 10^th birthday of the album that affirmed Jay-Z’s seat on the throne. Salute!
Words by Elliott Wilson

What does it take to be #1? Skill. Strength. Savvy. And throw in a little adversity on top. After his classic 1996 debut, Reasonable Doubt ignited the streets, dazzled the critics but didn’t move enough units, Shawn “Jay-Z” Carter scrapped his bad marketing plan for a one album discography and decided to a drop new masterful work each and every year. He emerged center stage with a fervent desire to be #1 in the post ‘Pac-Biggie era. No MC ever wanted the throne as much as Hov. If consistency kills than he was the Son of Sam and by the time he got to his sixth album, his frustrated competitors were firing shots back.

It was the summer of 2001 when Jay decided to counter his most vocal opposition, Prodigy by debuting an early version of “Takeover” during a headlining set at Hot 97’s Summer Jam. “You little fuck, I got money stacks bigger than you,” Hov growled while an image of the Mobb Deep member in his adolescent years as a dance school student beamed from the concert’s jumbo screen. But the salvo that set off hip-hop’s greatest battle is when Hov later brought up Prodigy’s QB brethren. “You guys don’t want it with Hov/Ask Nas he don’t want it with Hov.” It was a shot heard around the world. The battle for the new King of NY was on.

But The Blueprint isn’t a great album because of just one visceral record. From back to front, the opus is genius. The bonus songs alone were superior to other MCs entire albums. On “Lyrical Exercise,” Jay references his drug dealing past, his gift of memory, and offers evidence as to why he’s the best in the game via a brilliant sports thread. He literally runs circles around his foes with stamina. It’s the cherry on top of a classic. One that was ignited by a creative explosion that occurred one weekend in Baseline Studios when the sped-up soul-sampled productions of Kanye West and Just Blaze inspired SC to complete seven songs in two days. Not only was Hov gonna use this project to lay claim to his dominance in the rap field but he and his hungry Co-Ds behind the boards were gonna change the sound of hip-hop altogether. In late 2001, Jay-Z, Kanye West and Just Blaze would do to Swizz’s keyboard beats what the God MC would do eight years later to Auto-Tune: plummet its stock.

Just’s “U Don’t Know” is an exhilarating back to the future joyride of Hov’s journey from corner boy to corporate hustler. “Could make 40(K) off a brick but one rhyme could beat that,” he boasted over Bobby Byrd’s “I’m Not To Blame.” Mr. West then alters Bobby Blue Bland’s “Ain’t No Love In The Heart City” deliciously for Jay to vent about the cattiness of the rap game while asserting that his accomplishments should be appreciated. “I know you waitin’ in the wing/But I’m doin’ my thing.”

A true rap fan’s delight occurs on track 12 where Hov goes toe-to-toe with fellow Hall of Famer, Eminem over Marshall’s minimalist production. Like a closely contested heavyweight boxing match gone the distance, rap nerds still debate over which great MC’s performance is superior. “Eminem murdered you on your own shit,” is a hot line from Nas’ “Takeover” retaliation, “Ether” but one that’s not accurate.

As evidenced by the chorus of “Takeover,” “All I Need” has Hov focused on empowering his Roc-a-fella Records roster. Following in the footsteps of the Dynasty album a year earlier, Young H.O. was intent on sharin’ the spotlight with his signees: Memphis Bleek, Beanie Sigel, Freeway, Oschino, Sparks and the Young Gunz. Jordan was leading his young bulls. Like Bad Boy Records in its prime, the R.O.C. was the team you wanted to play for. Dame was still dancing with imaginary dice in his hand and Biggs was still chillin’ on a boat puffin’ on cigars.

But BP isn’t all male bravado; here Jay-Z laid some of his most personal work. Beyonce’s future hubby’s last days of pure bachelorhood wind down on the comical “Girls, Girls, Girls,” while “Song Cry” finds Hov lamenting the loss of old love. The hook supplied by his A&R Kyambo “Hip Hop” Joshua summed up Shawn’s cold steel persona: “I can’t see it coming down my eyes. So I gotta make the song cry.” The title track adds more touching moments, on which Jay lets his guard down to reminisce over great childhood memories (“banana pudding”).

The Blueprint was shrouded in emotion, especially with, at the time, the pending assault case for the stabbing of record exec Lance “Un” Rivera” hanging over its recordings. Although he declared he was “not guilty” on BP’s lead single “Izzo (H.O.V.A.),” Jay would eventually cop to the charge a month after the album’s release. Real world issues would also affect matters. Then there was album’s release date:

September 11, 2001, which will always be remembered for the World Trade Center tragedy. Touched by the horrific terrorist attack, Jay would donate proceeds from his TK tour to relief organizations. Being a class act while puttin’ his Timberland in all of his rival’s assses, Mr. Carter crafted an amazing album that remains his finest hour. 1998’s Vol. 2… Hard Knock Life is the album that introduced Jay-Z , the superstar. The Blueprint was the album that crowned Jay-Z the best.

The post Remembering Jay Z’s ‘The Blueprint’ On His 46th Birthday appeared first on The Source.

This Thanksgiving, Hip-Hop moved at a blistering pace, as we watched releases–both previously announced and surprises–get put out non-stop. If you looked away from your Twitter timeline to heat up leftovers, you might’ve missed three mixtapes, an album and an EP. From Fabolous to Chris Brown, and Yo Gotti to Erykah Badu, we were treated to multi-genre projects, one for just about every day of the four-day holiday weekend. In case you didn’t have time to sit down and really digest 100 songs in between stretching Thanksgiving food through the weekend and making an itinerary for Cyber Monday, we’ve set aside the 10 best songs from the holiday madness that you absolutely cannot miss.

The post The 10 Best Songs From All the Mixtapes We Got This Weekend appeared first on The Source.