A Refreshing Sound for Cleveland Hip-Hop

Cleveland rapper Authentic Issue is set to release his new mixtape titled “Fuck All That, Just Rap!”. He passed me two of the songs off of the upcoming project and I must say I was impressed. The Intro is a sobering reality of what Cleveland is going through during this time of transition. The public housing area known as Longwood or Down the Way, the area Authentic Issue calls home has gone through some drastic change over the past few years.

Cavs Offer Relief for Browns Fans by Giovanni Castelli

The Browns are once again stinking up the joint with a 2-5 record, a 36-year old journeyman starting at the most important position in the NFL while continuing to be a perennial loser since their return in 1999. Lucky for us, the Cavs‬ are back which for Cleveland sports fans is a good thing. They are a really good team, boast the best player in the world and are once again favorites to represent the Eastern Conference in the NBA Finals.

Let's just say the end of October each year has come to signify the end of Browns season and the beginning of Cavs season due to the Browns constant futility on and off the field. Today when asked about the QB situation I heard Mike Pettine say: "If you don't laugh you cry." Really?! I say that when something utterly BLOWS!! Which in my mind means Pettine knows his QB's BLOW!!

Go Support #YoungLangston on November 1st!!!

Later this week I will be launching an Indie Go-Go campaign to raise funds to print copies of A Summer In Harlem and When the Crows Come Home along with my promotional bookmarks and laptop stickers. Here is the promotional video for the campaign set to begin on November 1st. I will be posting a link for the campaign in the near future. Thank to all of my supporters, Peace...



 

Blought # 18: Is Traditional Radio Living on Borrowed Time?

The radio. What a marvel of human ingenuity. Officially created at the turn of the last century the little box made of wood and electrical wires completely changed how we humans receive information. Radios helped us transmit news stories to over a million homes, improve military and law enforcement communication and gave us a new source of entertainment. After the television became a commodity for most American families in 1960’s the radio took a slight dip in popularity.

Instead of listening to Eisenhower or FDR give an address over the radio you could watch Nixon on television since NBC, ABC and CBS could transmit broadcasts into the American home. By the 70’s and 80’s 8-track and cassette tapes made it easier to listen to the music you wanted, when you wanted and by the 90’s CD’s were revolutionizing music consumption all together.

Blought #17: The BET Hip-Hop Awards Suck!

So here’s the deal with BET. Viacom, the television  company that owns; Nickelodeon, MTV, Comedy Central and a bunch of other channels bought out BET for well over $2 billion in stocks around 2000. Reportedly the deal involved BET founder Robert L. Johnson becoming a major shareholder of Viacom. Blacks still call the shots but they answer to some white guy with quadruple their net worth to get advertising money which really pays television station bills and salaries.

This article isn’t here to get into all of that. It was just a backdrop to why I think the BET Hip-Hop awards blow. Granted, this year the awards did have to compete against the Las Vegas Democratic debate. But I mean let’s be honest here, the majority of Hip-Hop awards viewers aren’t into politics. I don’t need numbers to back that up, I live it.

Blought #16: How to Keep a Great City Great

This past Saturday I was fortunate enough to be invited to the Greater Cleveland chapter of the National Association of Black Journalist conference at Tri-C‘s auditorium. The NABJ hosted the conference, titled ‘Covering Comeback Cities. The list of speakers included  NBC WKYC-TV's Russ Mitchell, Fox-TV’s Charlie LeDuff of The Americans With Charlie LeDuff; Ohio Congresswoman Marcia Fudge; Cleveland Mayor Frank L. Jackson; Cleveland Police Chief Calvin Williams; and Chuck Stokes, Detroit's WXYZ-TV Director of Editorial/Public Affairs and son of the late Mayor Louis

It was a great atmosphere for a young writer like myself  to network and make connections. It was also an opportunity to gauge where my city was headed. Before the first panel started  Mayor Frank Jackson took the podium to share a few words. He talked about how Cleveland has spent billions of dollars to upgrade the city and how that wouldn’t be enough. There is a cycle of “boom and decline” that has to be broken.  The Mayor finished up by saying that “A great city isn’t based on the billions spent. It is what we do for the least of it. We need to make prosperity available for all.”

Blought #15: You woke? Then go back to sleep...

African Americans are entering a pivotal time in history as is the rest of the world. Blacks are finally at the doorstep we’ve been searching for since arriving on this stolen property some 400 odd years ago. Yes racism and discrimination exists but now they have become void excuses. The only thing holding us back is ourselves. Blacks have excelled in everything imaginable form entertainment to business to technology. I preach about this often but now I’m officially addressing it. YOU FAUX BLACK ELITES NEED TO STOP IT!!

Blought #14: Satire and The Boondocks

They say comedy is just honest observation. I’ve always had a crude sense of humor. I can remember when I was in middle school and Chappelle’s Show was one of the hottest shows on television. Dave was a master of projecting the black experience and our reality to the masses. He was my generation’s Richard Pryor.

A few years later Adult Swim premiered a new and raunchy show titled The Boondocks  from creator Aaron McGruder. The show which was based on the comic strip of the same name also created by McGruder, followed native Chicagoans Riley and Huey Freeman  who lived with their grandfather Robert Freeman as they struggled to adapt to their new suburban town of Woodcrest.

During it’s four season run over the span of ten years, The Boondocks was one of the most popular shows on television. Just like the comic had done, the show sparked outrage from both the media as well as the public.

I attribute the outrage to it’s brash and brazen use of the word “nigga”, it’s main protagonists being children and probably most of all because of it’s use of negative stereotypes regarding African-American culture. Many called the show ignorant and offensive.

Blought #13: Nicki-opoly

Finding a generally popular female rap artist is like finding a black republican. It isn’t impossible but it is fairly difficult. When I say generally popular I mean a female emcee who can come off as appealing to a wide range of Hip-Hop fans. When Hip-Hop evolved from mainly just Dj’s to emcees actually spitting bars, women had a say so as well. Emcees like Queen Latifah and MC Lyte were spreading socially conscience rhymes with a feminist view.

When the mid 90’s rolled in artists like Lil Kim, Missy Elliot, Da Brat, Trina, Eve and Foxy Brown all fought for their shine and the title of Queen of Hip-Hop. One by one they each began to fall off into obscurity. Da Brat and Foxy Brown quickly lost all traction and relevancy, Lil Kim and Trina stayed afloat until the mid 2000’s leaving Missy Elliot to claim the crown of Queen of Hip-Hop.

If you’ve read Blought, #9 ‘Damn, Shit Done Changed’, you heard the idea that over time Hip-Hop fans have forgotten or shunned previous generations. This past February Katie Perry performed during the Super Bowl XLIX halftime show. Perry brought out the previous Queen of Hip-Hop Missy Elliot. Teenagers who are too young to remember Elliot and her slew of hits questioned who she was and even suggested Katie Perry would help her blow up… Really?

Unlike the 90’s, today’s female Hip-Hop scene is completely ruled by Nicki Minaj. Although Missy Elliot arguably won her era there was still an even playing field. With Nicki and her peers, it isn’t even close.

'The Mouthwatering Taste of Success' by Brendan Whitt

Ethan and Indians Co-owner Paul Dolan

Anyone who has ever been successful in anything had to have one key character trait, perseverance. Whether it’s LeBron going to the gym before most of us have hit snooze, Jay-Z knowing that a drug dealer could become an all time great rap artist and business mogul or President Obama fighting his way to the White House as a black man. Perseverance will always get us through the rough and uncertain patches in life.

When I first heard of Ethan Holmes and his story I was inspired. I saw a guy who looks like me, is from my city and was on his way to the top. Ethan has always had a passion for business. He and a friend had a lemonade stand as children which they later made mobile and he even sold chocolate bars to classmates at Shaker Heights High School.

Then at 15 the idea hit him. “Why not start an applesauce company?” he thought. The market wasn’t saturated and he didn’t like the taste of Motts and other brand’s applesauces. “They’re flavors were just sugary and bland” he said. Ethan had been inspired by businessman Farrah Gray’s Book ‘Reallionaire’ given to him by his godmother.

Blought # 12: Don't be so Insensitive Bro

Social media has become a staple of our everyday lives. Just like we brush our teeth, put gas in our cars and go grocery shopping we have to stay connected.

We update our status, post photos and share videos or links that we find interesting or entertaining with others. Social media is a place where we humans now congregate for networking, promotion or just to tell our family member in California "I love you" (Hey Jacob!).

Sadly the social media world, much like the real world, is a place where ignorance and insensitivity is prevalent. The opposition of removing the Confederate flag this past July reminded us all that racism is still very much alive. If those guys won I'd probably be a slave somewhere in Alabama making smart phones or laptops, who knows?