Roy Ayers

Just had to share.

I met Roy Ayers last night!!! No kidding y'all. Apparently he's in town for a show tonight.

I hope allya or at least some a ya know who Roy Ayers is cause it dont seem none of my friends do except for Single Serving Diva. So see me after meeting the man and texting and emailing all my people and they responding is who is dis Roy Ayers fella? chupse! way to bring me down folks, way to bring me down.

Hugh Hef

(I staying way from all things Caster Semenya he/she related)

but eh eh, allya hear that Hugh Hefner getting divorce? Yes Hugh Hefner, the playboy fella, playboy mansion, playboy bunnies, ol gal-yst, trailor load a girl, world a girl, nuff gal an gal in a bundle fella. Yes, that Hugh Hefner.

Well the first question I had was wait Hugh Hefner married fa true? Wha I dont think many people did know that. Cause I mean the man doan live in the Playboy Mansion wid he girlfriends and have a a gazillion young tings in skimpy undress running roun the house? I mean I know fellas that wanta grow up to be Hugh Hefner. (not me mind you I barely dodging death wid de one I got so I aint want nuh multiple womens to kill me). And now you telling me the man Hugh Hef was married? Man wunnah lie!

And the big joke is Hugh Hefner claim the ex-wife horn he. He say she cheat on he during the marriage.

Well looka muh crosses. Imagine this man got woman galore an complaining he divorcing cause the wife cheat on he. Wha all I could do is laugh.

But looka this ting fa true. On anudda note though now I aint know if wunnah familar wid dis story but recently the rapper Nas get divorce from he wife Kelis. De woman got a chile fa he an he gotta pay $9000 a month in child support and anudda $30 something thousand a month in spousal support to she cause apparently she duz only mek a measly, poor-raky, $13,000 a month which apparently is not enuff ta properly raise nuh chile on. Supposedly! Meanwhile nuff a we would be glad to see $13,000 every year or 6 months furthermore a month. Chupse!

Anyways you would imagine that Nas a lil two by three rapper, nuh disrespect son, you good but you aint nuh Jay-Z, Jigga big figure, "business, man not a business man" type paying a whopping $44,000 in support monthly and big Huge Hef, multi multi-millionaire, founder and owner and chief top dog of the Playboy skin out empire only paying he ex-wife $20,000 a month?

Wha cuhdear Nas you get unfair boy.

This n That

I really dont have any coherent thoughts. Sleep deficiency and allergy season will do that to ya. So anyways

1) Tv's back. yipee! Think I'm going to like the new series Fringe!

2) The Conservatives are going to kick series ass this election in Canada. I'm calling it as they finally get their majority. The Liberals are dithering.

3) It was like something from out of a movie in my opinion. Woman shoots man and throws body from moving car on a crowded highway. Oh and of course there was the obligatory police chase afterwards. Damn T-Dot is getting real.

4) Doesn't it make you wonder about our leaders when election campaigns become contests between childish individuals with feigned reactions to comments taken out of context. Like Obama called folks bitter a few months back and we're still on that and he made this pig comment yesterday and thats going to be news forever. Just grow up and deal with the issues. Damn!

5) Kardi's new album is pretty nice. However I find he rhymes like a toned down version of dancehall's Dr. Evil (as opposed to Austin Powers Dr Evil) on that Dangerous track with Akon.

6) Speaking of Austin Power's Dr Evil. Why'd that dude have to wear a nehru jacket? I've got conspiracy theories about that. I will be starting a campaign to bring back the Shirt Jac! Folks are going whats a shirt jac? If you're from north america you probably wouldnt get it. and i'm too tired to explain.

7) I've got a 10 reason's Obama will not win the election idea rattling around in my head. #10 because non-Americans love him to death. #9 because this election isnt about the issues, #8 because he's muslim (or at least some american still think he is), #7 because he will be mauled to death by a pack of rabid hockey moms, #6 because Michelle is a black revolutionary (power to the people), #5 because he's elitist, ... well i'll leave the rest for now but you get the drift.

New Flow

Recently I've seen a few articles (including this one) complaining about the change in programming on Flow 93.5 FM here in Toronto. From primarily an Urban station format, Flow has apparently morphed into a top 40 station and some folk here are up in arms.

I really don't see why all of the hoopla over Flow. I mean in my opinion we were all hoodwinked on this station from the inception anyways.

Back in the day, read 10 years ago, Toronto, gasp, didn't have its own homegrown urban station. Say it wasn't so? No it was so! We had WBLK straight out of Buffalo instead and the reception for that station was spotty at best. You could pick it up in Scarborough not so well downtown etc etc. Mind you BLK as it was known loved Toronto, after all they were getting paid off Toronto focused advertising, something like 60% of total revenue at the time I had heard. We in Toronto did have though and continue to have some excellent urban and black oriented programming on local college radio; CKLN, CIUT, CHRY.

Anyway at that point in came Mr Denham Jolly of Milestone Radio with his proposal to the CRTC for an urban, at that time read black, station and his complaints that the CRTC had kept turning him down (3 times actually) and how it was a shame that a major city like Toronto didn't have an urban station. Which it was by the way!

The urban, read black, public bought his argument and threw their support behind his cause and in 2000 Toronto and Mr Jolly finally got the CRTC to see the light and sometime early in 2001 Toronto had its own urban station. Flow 93.5 FM.

They started well. Grabbed up a bunch of local community radio personalities (Somebody send out an S.O.S for my man DJ X) to fill some slots and we the public thought it was on and popping. Finally!

Except that what should have been cause for real celebration wasn't really in my opinion. See the black community had thrown its support behind Mr Denham because most of us naively thought we would be getting the equivalent of the community radio shows on this new urban station but more of it. All day long, we had envisioned as opposed to those late night time slots that we had on the community radio. We were picturing 24-7 hip hop, rnb , calypso, reggae, jazz and programming speaking to the needs and desires of the urban read black populace.

Yea sure in the back of our minds we knew that BLK an urban station as well didn't do that but BLK wasn't that bad and we thought Flow being all based in Toronto would cater more to the needs of the unique mix that is Toronto's urban population.

What we got instead wasn't even sorry was nowhere near as good as BLK and is what I refer to as BET radio. The same 10 or 20 tunes played ad nauseam in slightly different sequences for the whole day. I personally still remember hearing John Legend's Used to love U about 5 times in a 40 min trip from downtown to Scarborough a few years back.

Oh don't get me wrong though we did get a few bones thrown our way to appease us. Our little calypso show on Sunday evenings and the occasional reggae (read nuff nuff nuff Sean Paul) and the late, late night real underground hip hop but prime time and the rest of the day for the most part was just like watching 106 & Park with a few exceptions, big up Starting From Scratch.

In my opinion the station never lived up to our expectations or desires. Of course maybe we were a bit too idealistic. Its cool to have that urban station but the majority of us who supported the application back in the day I'm pretty sure if you ask us 7 years later this is not what we expected or in some cases were led to believe the station would be like.

A so it go sometimes, the argument being that the format we envisioned wouldn't make the money required to run a successful business. Got to market the station and get a broader base and I guess playing the same 10 rnb and hip hop songs does that. Its all about that C.R.E.A.M still ain't it?

So no I don't see what folks are getting all upset about. It doesn't really matter if Flow starts playing Madonna and Britney now cause they let us down from the inception. This is not what we had in mind when late in the last millennium we talked excitedly about having an urban station or signed petitions to enhance Mr Jolly's claims. Flow used us and sold us out but we were naive and idealistic so its not totally their fault. After all what did we know about urban stations, it was all new ground for us. How were we to know that Urban radio meant the same playlist over and over until we actually think we like the tunes being played.

Still like I Said Top 40 or BET radio makes no damn difference to me. I don't listen anymore. Give me the community shows. Big up Worldwide, big up Masterplan, big up Mixtape Massacre, big up Morning Ride. Flow, new Flow who cares.

This n That

(1) Its bad enough they're sending Marion to jail but now they trying to mess with my girl Mary.

A new report claims that certain entertainment stars are linked to the steroid scandal. They named 50 Cents, Mary J Blige, Wycleff Jean, Timbaland and Tyler Perry.

Anything to get Roger Clements out of the spotlight I guess. Chupse!

Look who really cares if these stars used steroids? Do steroids or HGH help you to sing better? Is it like those Ghost Weed skits from De La Soul's Art Official Intelligence album where the Ghost weed helped you to drop rhymes like certain rappers? Was Tyler Perry on an HGH binge when he came up with his Madea character?

Look these Hollywood types have been going under the knife, botoxing, enhancing, siliconing, bleaching, tanning and the like for donkey years in order to enhance appearance. If they are using HGH and steroids now its not the same as an athlete who is using this stuff to compete against another athlete and break sporting records. So big deal!

I can just see congressional hearings into Entertainers and steroids?
Congressman: Mr Perry, And is it true that Madea's tirades are fueled by your rampant steroid abuse?
Perry: What? You do know Madea is a fictional character right?
Congressman: Just answer the question Mr Perry, stop trying to throw us off track here.

(2) BET founder Bob Johnson criticizes Obama? What? Seriously? You mean Bob 'I sold out the black community with my shucking and jiving channel' Johnson can criticize anyone? Ok maybe Obama did some drugs or did some questionable stuff in his teen years but ummm isn't that like 99% of the folk you promote on your channel? You've made money off promoting and giving voice to dudes who have claimed to slang rock, peddled yayo, carried weight, moved fishscale and God knows what else (While giving some credible real artists the shaft I might add) and you're going to get on a high horse here?

Look I'm not saying you need to support Obama cause he's black or anything I'm just questioning what gives you the moral high ground to attack Obama given your record of exploiting and demeaning black culture.


(3) Random and completely innocent dude accidentally gets shot and killed on Yonge street Friday night by some cats who were trying to shoot a strip club bouncer. The victim just happened to be walking up the street to the subway to go home to his family when the incident occurred.

Tell me where's the outrage? Where's the we're being slack on crime and innocents are suffering outcry that followed Jane Crebe's death two years ago? I mean there are similarities right? Random innocent bystander gets shot downtown, in the heart of the city, on Yonge street right? Where's the outrage man? A child is left without a father and a wife without a husband. I'm just saying.

Random

Ok a few stories that caught my attention.

- The MinnesotaVikings fined one of their players for missing a game two Sundays ago because he had to attend the funeral of his grandmother. His grandmother who raised him as a kid. Damn that's cold.

- While I feel for Kanye's lost I just think its so senseless that she died during elective surgery.

-kid gets killed for brandishing a hairbrush. damn! reminds me of that Michael Moore skit where he said black men shouldn't carry dark colored wallets

-Man in India marries a dog. No no no, fa real I mean a actual female dog, no fa real no insult the man marry a real mutt. Seriously. Ah hell no one will believe me anyway.

-Remember the judge who sued the dry cleaners. I blogged about it a while back. Well he lost his job. Cuhdear!

-Black girl suspended for purple hair. Good for her, she feel she name Prince or what. Oh wait he had purple rain not hair my bad.

-Michael Jordan's divorce is costing him 168 Mil. Van Dammmmm!

Seriously there was more but I cant remember where it went. Oh well enjoy.

Cholesterol Minded?

(sorry stole that title from some cat on okayplayer)

What I want you to do is count to ten.
Nine, eight, seven, six, five, four, three, two
On one, you will be asleep - one
I cant wake up -KRS-One

I really hope I'm dreaming.

Hear that sound? Its the sound of hip hop's death knell. Hip Hop is indeed dead!

When I checked my email this morning and saw that KRS-one was going to be on Celebrity Fit Club I was a bit taken aback. So much so that I started to write a rather dismissive missive (yes that rhymes) called 'Fat's gonna getcha' in response to the news but then I stopped. Actually you can do some really cool parody stuff in this regards with some of his song titles; Cholesterol Minded, Fat's gonna getcha, You must Burn (those calories), the Fridge is over.

But I digress.

Krs-one, the Teacha, the Blastmaster (and for any of you aspiring Krs-one dissers remember blastmaster does sort of rhyme with fat bastard just in case you ever need a cheap shot in a freestyle battle) a hip hop icon is going on celebrity fight club? Author, Guest lecturer at Universities around the world, Founder of H.E.A.L and the Stop the Violence Movement, the Temple of hip hop organization. The cat has done it all.

You must learn, My philosophy, Boom Bap, Hip Hop vs Rap, Outta Here, Criminal Minded, Stop the Violence, Self Destruction, the Emcee, Love's gonna getcha, Jack of Spades, Still #1, South Bronx, The bridge is over? One of the greatest freestylers ever, a legend in concert! And as an aside let me say that one of the coolest movie scenes I've ever seen is that one in Clockers when the lil kid with the gat in the paper bag is rolling up on his bicycle while Outta here is blasting in the background. Wicked!

Ok I'm resisting the urge here to just blast the Blastmaster about this whole celebrity fitness thing and its mainly cause I used to really respect this guy. It wasn't just the music, it was the image. Krs has always been unorthodox, he walks to his own beat, he can be dismissive, he can be arrogant, he can make lofty claims and contradict himself, but aside from his music, he seemed to be a man of principal. I respect that cause in today's society its hard to find people who have principal!

Wont say I've always agreed with everything he's ever said. Actually he lost me way back in the days with the black drug dealer song (wow was that like 93 or something) and since then I've always questioned much of what he says but still I had respect for the cat.

He also lost me with some of his recent comments regarding 50's new album being better than Kanye's, his adding Lil Wayne and Chingy to his Stop the Violence Movement and his bigging up some of these new cats who are clearly crap but like I was arguing with my boy yesterday maybe there is method to his madness.

Now I'm clearly a jdid old school loving hip hop fan. I honestly aint feeling 99% of what these cats claim is hip hop these days. I can't seriously listen to the ay bay bays and superman's and that other stuff without nostalgia for the old days and fear that the future and indeed the present are both dimmer than a 20 watt light bulb.

However that's me I'm set in my ways, that's how it is. However my argument over Kris' recent actions was that maybe just maybe he realizes that each new generation puts a different spin on its music and that maybe the way to impart knowledge to these young cats is to reach out to them instead of always criticizing. Maybe that was his plan. Not sure its going to work with these knuckleheads but I was trying to not be harsh on my man and probably being somewhat of a Krs apologist especially since I now realize he's doing tracks with G-Unit. Maybe that explains the 50 Cent comments (what are the odds that Krs joins G-Unit?)

Anyway I also realized my issue is not that Krs is overweight although for a man who claims to be a vegan and once rapped strongly against meat (The cow doesn't grow fast enough for man, So through his greed he makes a faster plan, He has drugs to make the cow grow quicker, Through the stress the cow gets sicker, Twenty-one different drugs are pumped,Into the cow in one big lump, So just before it dies, it cries, In the slaughterhouse full of germs and flies) way way before it was cool to be vegetarian you would have thought that he would have taken better care of himself. Naa cant diss the bredren cause he packed on the pounds. Happens to the best of us. He's overweight, he recognises he has a problem he's dealing with it. Kris has had a hard year too and maybe Marley's heart attack was a wake up call so props for trying to do something about the fitness.

So no that aint my issue. Plus to be honest I really don't think he's that big. Bigger than before but still. Naa my issue is not that he's tackling his problem its how he's tackling it; on a reality show joint on Celebrity Fit Club.

Way I see it if you've got a problem handle you business but yo you're telling me that you cant hire a personal trainer or dietitian and do this on the low? There are tonnes of ways to tackle this problem and it doesn't have to be public. And if you wanted it to be public and make a statement maybe about blacks and obesity still no reason to go on a reality show with b and c listers. Helll this show is just two steps away from Flavor of Love man.

The only reason to do this in a reality show format is cheap tawdry publicity and that Kris is definitely not a good on you. So shame on you sir. Bad bad move.

Oh well maybe this is strange twisted payback for throwing Prince Bee off the stage back in the day.

Of course we gotta pay rent, so money connects, but uhh
I'd rather be broke and have a whole lot of respect
It's the principal of it,......
For those who pose lyrical but really ain't true I feel
"Their time's limited, hard rocks too"
Time's Up - O.C

Fiascogate

I got now I don't care who got next

I've have the double whammy of not having enough time to write and also having a bit of writing block. Just having one of those 'is this blog worthy' type of episodes where I second guess everything that pops into my head. But I figure the only way to blog is to jump back on the horse and try to find something to talk about.

I considered speaking on Fiascogate but I only found out about that yesterday. I do have strong opinions on Fiascogate though so maybe I'll type a few sentences on it. Without going into the whole story (if you really are interested check the link) I believe that Lupe Fiasco (hence Fiascogate) is wrong here. Yea I may be one of those elitist hip hop fans who will look down on him cause he doesn't know TCQ's Midnight Mauraders but at the same time I sort of understand how a kid his age shouldn't be expected to recite that ode word for word. The issue to me though is his response. He almost sounds like he thinks its cool not to know Midnight Mauraders. Its never cool to not know one's history at the very least he should know that material in the context of what he does and what that album meant back in the day.

Even if he didn't though all he had to do was plead ignorance and sound contrite and we might have let him slide assuming he promised to study up for next time. Instead dude is taking the offensive arrogant position. Not cool. He cant be given a free pass cause as someone said if it was a solja boy or webbie or young joc who said what he said we would all be condemning them as stupid and mindless and giving this as an example of why hip hop is where it is right now.

That said I still loved Food & Liquor and look forward to The Cool.

Anyway hopefully tomorrow I'll have something worth reading to write about.

In Year of the Dragon

In the year of the Dragon lots of men disappear
Quiet as it's kept they won't be around next year
Year of the Dragon - Wycleff Jean/Lauryn Hill

So Pras came out and said that Lauryn Hill is mentally ill. Read here. That's not too hard to believe is it? At least not considering some of her behavior post-Fugees anyways.

Way back when I started this blog I said I didn't want to see the Fugees do a reunion for legacy reasons but still this is pretty sad. I hope she gets some help. The Dutch Pots posted a paragraph about how terrible her concert was in Amsterdam a few weeks back and it got me thinking about the whole Lauryn thing.

I mean I used to be the biggest Lauryn Hill fan and this was even before the Score dropped and Killing me Softly became a worldwide hit. I used to be like did you see that girl in Sister Act 2 sing? Yo she's got potential, she'll go far. And yea I was disappointed with the Fugees first album, although a couple of the remixes that came out later were stellar, but still I held on to hope. That girl has potential just you wait and see she's going to break out big! Then Killing me softly dropped, one time, one time and it was over! It was nice to see that potential fulfilled with the Fugees. Then she did the solo thing and it was hitting. But somewhere along the line after her solo album dropped she wore thin on me. I just noticed some serious attitude like "I'm the greatest thing since sliced bread creeping in" and it turned me off. The album was great though and she deserved those Grammys but I sort of thought the fame was going to her head.

Then like Chinua Achebe Things fell apart. Damn. Y'all know the rest.

Anyway I was listening to this Lauryn verse on Wycleff Jean's The Carnival this morning and couldn't help but think that her words were self prophetic.

Clef it kind of remind me of this chick I once knew
Use to be a dime, now she's strung out in Bellevue
See the serpent played tricks run game like the Knicks
Build you up just to lose the championship.
I seen her reminiscing over Wu-Tang could It Be that Simple
She lost her Prince cause there were Thieves In the Temple
Tragic depression made her lose all her teeth
Lost and turned out gave her body to the streets
Sweet Mary don't you weep
Still water runs deep
So be careful of the company you keep.
In the year of the Dragon lots of men disappear
Quiet as it's kept they won't be around next year

Age aint nothing but a number

I little late with this one but figure I might as well cause it still seems to have some life left in it.

By now most of you have heard about the Akon controversy with him grinding on some 14 year old girl at a show he did in Trinidad. I first heard of it via Mad Bull and that was a week or so ago.

Anyway turns out the girl was the daughter of some local pastor and there has been a big uproar about the incident. In brief this is what happened; she at the Akon show, Akon called for girls to come on stage and dance with him in some contest with the winner getting a trip to Africa which never materialized, she went up/was pulled up/was carried up depends on who you talk to and Akon put a serious grind on her lifting her up and throwing her all around the stage. He throw in some big money wine on she or as we would say in Barbados "Akon do de dog! He wuk up pun she stink stink stink den!"

Now I am not saying Akon knew she was 14 and given Akon's lyrics I would hope it wasn't no all ages show he was putting on so he probably thought she was legit but still now it's a big controversy with people cussingAkon claiming he molest she, the gal crying about how she friends push she on stage and she didn't know what was going to happen and even the Trinidad Prime Minister calling for investigation and all sorta big baccanal.

Alright so those are the facts, this is my take.

First off I ain't know about y'all but I grow up hearing a generalisation that Pastor's children are wild and do all sorts of things to rebel against their parents and personally I know a few to be honest that prove that that saying wasn't a complete falsehood. So my personal bias is to believe that this young girl ain't as innocent as she trying to claim after the fact. I don't know she though so I cant say for certain. Maybe she was just young and misguided.

Secondly, I see some pictures of the girl at the club and she ain't look no 14. She look like she well in she 20s with all she body expose, big navel ring and tattoo. For sureAkon probably didn't have a clue. Mind you that's not a valid excuse under the law, nuff fellas get lock up using that same excuse. It doesn't excuse his actions but at the same time I don't think that he willfully went after a 14 year old girl. Now that brings up another issue. Was what he did to her on thedancefloor sexual assault because of the actual actions or just because of the actions in relation to a 14 year old? Cause if its sexual assault in general to get on like thatnuff entertainers better beware.

Thirdly I don't know the girl's mind state. Some 14 year olds real mature some pretty childish. Maybe she is telling the truth that she had no idea that the man would be bouncing her all around the stage like a rag doll. Maybe she thought he was inviting her up for a spelling bee or that they would instead engage in a rousing duet of "Nearer my God to thee' I cant say for certain. What is known is that the girl is embarrassed and ashamed. Is that because of Akon's actions or because everybody saw the video and she is a church girl?

And Fourth and finally. Wait sorry two more points. Fourth damn you Akon now they claiming your rnb stylings are hip hop and using this as another lets scapegoat hip hop moment. Your style ain't even original son, I liked you way better the first time you came asWycleff Jean. And don't tell me you haven't noticed that Don't Matter sounds like it was ripped straight out the Cleff's songbook.

Ok and Fifth and finally as I had initially said on Mad Bulls blog after first viewing the video "I’ve always found the Caribbean had a double standard towards north American artists that's not applied to soca artists though." I stand by that statement. The call girls onto the stage for danceoffs, to grind on artists routine has been done ad infinitum by Caribbean artists for years with all levels of debauchery going on on the stage and I aint heard a peep from no Prime Ministers so why the drama now? And don't feel it's cause the girl is 14, I'm sure some of those girls I see on stage at certainsoca shows round Caribana, wining back, pouching back, wukking up bad cant be any older. Pure double standard dat!

The way I see it, she made a mistake, she wasn't supposed to be at the show or at least not on stage, maybe she was a bit shocked by the dance movements thatAkon put on her and even more surprised once it hit Youtube, her father found out, they complaining now about Akon.

Yes he takes blame for the slackness in his show and maybe he shouldn't be flinging around ANY women like that and ladies y'all shouldn't allow yourselves to be onstage doing that stuff either but that's not what this is about. Maybe he should have known she was underage but honestly don't just pick him out to throw the book at while other artists do the same thing and no one complains. f you're going to throw the book at the so called hip hop artist start flinging it seriously at some of them sameTrini and other kaisomen that does be simulating sex on stage during their shows.

That is all I have to say on that.

What rhymes with Imus?

Ok I'm late with my thoughts plus I'm not sure if I can be coherent on this Don Imus thing so here I go in point form.

- I'm waiting for the first hip hop freestyle where the rapper references Don Imus. I had a few ideas myself but I'll hold off.

- Regardless of all the outrage and protests and CNN interviews done by the black 'leaders' and those who speak for Black America one must realize that the market was the deciding factor in Imus's firing. Advertisers decided they were pulling out so Imus got fired. Its that simple! Our so called 'leaders' could have thumped and harangued till the cows came home and ain't a damn thing would have changed without the market making a move. Just realize that.

- Has this issue been overblown? Has Imus been given more status than he deserves? Some say yes some say no. I say he was a public figure and should have known better. Also I think his excuses for using that language are pretty lame. Don't expect me to believe you didn't realize it was offensive. You're not a johnny come lately or an unintelligent man. Maybe you made a mistake but don't blame it on someone else's speech. Also if I was a black woman I would be royally pissed about this.

- Hip hop the ever present scapegoat can I defend it (sigh)? Yes and no. I think the language and topics in hip hop need to be addressed. The music has lost its way. The music is non-sense nowadays. On the other hand is it a case of popular culture reflecting life or life reflecting popular culture? Who was using this type of language first and if hip hop stops using it will it stop on the streets? Not likely I say but at the same time I think one must realize the symbiosis between the streets and hip hop. And no hip hip isn't jail culture as one commentator on CNN said. Hip hop influences the streets and the streets influence hip hop. We can argue sometimes rightfully and quite successfully that hip hop is getting a bad rep and that it isn't to blame here or for all of the black community's ills as some commentators would like us to believe but at the same time it is an influential medium and needs to take responsibility. Its complicated in this case the more hip hop has embraced this language the more it makes it cool and hip. Rappers need to understand that and yes sadly they are role models and kids look up to them.

- Still regarding the last point while I realize hip hop's influence and responsibility I believe there are more factors to be blamed here so why is hip hop always the official scapegoat? Shut down hip hop and this stuff will still happen.

- I am kind of tired of white folks when they make mistakes regarding race trying to fall behind the shield of but some of my best friends are black or look at what I've done for the black community. That ish is tired and played! Man up to your mistakes.

- Found the Michael Ray Richardson incident to be a bit like this Imus thing except he was fired almost immediately after the incident came to light. Still I don't know I'm a bit biased here but calling someone crafty ain't exactly the same thing as calling them a ho. That's just my opinion. I guess he didn't have the hip hop scapegoat to blame for his indiscretion unless he claimed he got it from a Beastie Boys record.

- Do we take race and insults amongst our own too lightly in the black community? Possibly. Is it a double standard? Some say yes. But is the black community the only ones with a double standard? Nope! So what does that teach us? Just because a member of your race can get away with saying it doesn't mean that someone from another race can do the same or "Whats good for goose ain't necessarily good for the gander" and this holds for black folks talking about other races as well.

- Should Imus' comments have been taken with a grain of salt, was he just going for laughs like a Comic View comedian? Again context and the person making the comment are very important. Imus should never have gone there.

- What happens next? Imus has been fired, he's apologized, CNN has had their story of the week. Where do we go from here? Will something change. Will we realize its bigger than Hip Hop! Or will everything remain the status quo until the next Michael Richards or Imus pops off with something silly?