Look all three ways

Caught this on Gawker: Visual artist Ron aka RonConCocaCola explores dysfunctional urban interactions in the form of bad street habits for his master thesis project "Three Way Street". NYC is notorious for its crazy drivers, but anyone who lives here knows that drivers, bikers, and pedestrians are all guilty of reckless urban traveling. As Ron notes on his blog, these old habits are preventing effective new change and blurring the debate over who has rights to the space. The bird's-eye-view nature of the Three Way Street video puts these arguments in better perspective than a town hall meeting. It's also quite entertaining.

3-Way Street from ronconcocacola on Vimeo.

Hero Day: Jay Z (repost from Dzigasounds)

I rap.

No no-, it surprises me too that this housedj/black-soul-hipster-lookin- chick actually drops some verses and I will publicly announce now that the rapper who has been most influential to me is Jay-Z.

Idk what that does to my street cred or my music snobbery cred, but I'm going to explain. I grew up in the 90s....that use to make me young and my memory of pop culture and pop history insignificant but I don't think that's the case anymore. Furthermore, I grew up in the hood/ a predominantly working class-middle class Black neighborhood of a super segregated New York State city with two very older siblings who were driving by the time was I was walking. Likely, with a single-parent working mother, when I wasn't with my grandma I was with my siblings-- in their cars, with their friends, in the house; being exposed to whatever radio, cassettes (90s!), or music videos they played and watched. It was all hip-hop and R&B, so as I child, before I grew a musical identity of my own, I continued to listen to what they listened to and watched the videos they watched. The artists behind these songs, at least the hip-hop ones, that I remember were Big Pun, Foxy, Missy, and Jay Z.

*(I missed tupac and biggie, and I ain't gonna front like I ever tried to catch up. I didn't. It's just the way it was for me)*

Jay stuck out the most. I'll try and regain some cred by saying that the prime of J's musical careers were the albums he came out with during my childhood (Reasonable Doubt to the Black Album). These are the albums people think of when we call him one of the best rappers of all time. When I was 11 and 13 I ordered the Blueprint, Jay-Z: MTV Unplugged and The Black Album from a CD catalog that was the way to order CDs before Apple was more than a fruit and Amazon existed. Can't tell you how many times I listened to them, how much I heard bits of myself in songs like Dec. 4th, can't tell you how much I appreciated, learned from, and absorbed J's flow on the tracks, how much I escaped to or understood the stories painted in these albums.

Many communities don't get voices...sometimes its problematic to have rappers, rap, hip-hop, and pop-hop as it's become to be the voice of urban, black, or youth communities. But during that time period, Jay was the voice of my community. And he did it with class.

Yes, class, though hip-hop can be seen as a sort of classless art form. What's expected from an artistic tool used to discuss a dirty, grimy, dark lifestyle and existence? It's a heavy burden to do that and do it well and many rappers fail and many rappers get lost and many rappers don't even try and abandon that tradition, one that was started when the first boats arrived from Africa so when a rapper does do it well-- you can feel it.

But enough philosophy. J painted my childhood until I got to the point where I abandoned hip-hop for music that made more sense to me at the time. And although there were a few more rappers that also grabbed my attention before I left (Luda, Nelly, Missy, Busta...), whenever I sat down to tell a story, to release something--it came out in rhyme and in the form of a rap verse and I always had Jay- Z in the back of my mind.

And that's just my story, but I don't know a whole lot of other music lovers who don't have a solid Jay-Z track in their catalog of 50 best songs of their memory. But more than just the far-reaching potency of his music, what must also be respected is Jay-Z's business sense. This dude has done some serious, serious, entreneurship. He's built an empire of record labels, basketball teams, clothing lines, restaurants, clubs, real-estate, beer...everything. He's retired, married a superstar, made albums, went on tour, launched some of the most famous rappers and producers into the game, come back, released an album, went on tour, produced a broadway musical, and returned to claim his throne. But in all fame, glitz, glamour, and general hallabaloo, we sorta lost sight of the J we use to know and couldn't quite remember if he deserves the respect he seems to be demanding.

Enter J's new book (yeah homie's an *author* now) "Decoded", and more importantly his recent conversation with Dr. Cornel West (moderated by some crazy European dude) at the New York Public library. These two media releases brings Jigga back to the level of leader, poet, and important community (Black community, music industry community, hip-hop community) voice. Not gonna give a full synopsis, but you need to watch this ish. They talk about anything and everything that is relevant to these two cultural figures. Without a doubt, whether we like it or not, Jay is going down in pop-culture history, but before we dismiss it I think it's important to understand what he's saying as he continues to make his mark. Take for example this: "The internet was a way of the music industry purging itself". Dude believes the same thing I do, that the internet is the way to escape the banality, shallowness, and "thinness", as Dr. West calls it, of radio-driven commercial music (see the success of J Cole's new mixtape). Jay even admits that he left the system for two years to build with other artists because he's disgusted with the fact that "people don't even believe in artist development anymore."

As I've made my return back to hip-hop, I've come to know a lot of young MCs and musicians who see the hip-hop game and music industry as a way to make it. As a way to escape. They wanna be "BIG" big. They wanna have the money, the lights, the glam. They wanna be the next Jays, Lupes, Drakes, whatevers. Without leaving you my own opinion on all that, or even what I want from music myself ( who wouldn't mind a Jay-Z story of their own?), I'll leave you with a beautiful quote from "Decoded" about what the men and women we grew up with used this music thing for.

The 70s were a strange time, especially in Black America.The music was beautiful in part because it was keeping a type of torch lit in dark times...I feel like we as rappers, djs, producers were able to smuggle some of the magic of that dying civilization out of the music and use it to build a new world. We were kids without fathers so we found our fathers on wax, and on streets, and in history, and in a way that was a gift. We got to pick and choose the ancestors who would inspire the world we were going to make for ourselves...rap took the remnants of a dying society and created something new. Our fathers were gone, usually because they just bounced, but we took the records to build something fresh.

Popculture eaters/historians/cultural students--watch or listen to this conversation.

My fellow musicians and aritists--what new world are you building, and what ancestors are you bringing with you?

Black Males in a Perpetual Crisis

I just stumbled across this article on the Buffalo News website. More accurately, I stumbled upon the adorable face of this little guy

and couldn't help but read on.

"The nation's young black males are in a state of crisis,"

Well...that's not new information. The Nation's young black males have been in a state of crisis since 1863 when they became part of the nation, since 1954, sine 1992, since 2008. Year after year, decade after decade, generation after generation, a combination of legal and de facto external and internal policy has put the young black male on the chopping block. Even today. Don't tell me about Obama, his election may have well been one of the most detrimental things to happen to YBMs. Wars on Communism, Wars on Drugs, Wars on Terror--Fights for our right at the sake of their rights, Protect our communities, Secure our families--We want our country back...

Whatever banner waved above them, people have been seeking policies and change that more or less not only disenfranchise the young Black male, but the poor, the old, the disabled--the other of all colors. The Civil Rights Movement fractured, small groups of fighters formed their own coalitions, demanded their own things, and failed to support each other, thereby failing to acknowledge their common enemy, and failing to defeat Him. Disgust of immigrants, of Muslims, of terrorism, of Gays, of Obamacare has fueled the support of the most non-helpful, racist, classist, elitist candidates, who have risen to power in this past election, or eagerly seek it.

Of course not everyone recognizes this. No one is out to overtly systematically destroy the Black male. But that's exactly what's been happening for centuries. Mentors within the community and White House Meetings on the current "crisis" are nice....but those are not the solutions. The problems are not coming from the YBM community. Those are just the results. The problems are coming....have been coming....from us. From our own hate, fear, and ignorance. From politicians selling themselves on the fear ticket, from voters too ignorant to truly research their platforms. From "scholars" and "professionals" and "historians" failing to demand the external change that is required for the internal change to occur. From self-centered activists, too narrow in their scope. From artists, who have been stolen from the community. From the everyday individual: uneducated, unchallenged, and complacent.

WE will kill the black male. We will kill him like we killed the red male. We will kill them all, all the browns, slaughtering them with ignorance, silence, and hate until there are no more left. They will cease to exist. They will face erasure.

That little boy's eyes will fail to matter.

Where is our report? Where is our coalition, our White House Committee.....Where are we?

My July 4th Manifesto

I am probably using the word "manifesto" incorrectly, but nonetheless....

It's independence day, which is in its most simplest form, the day we celebrate that time way back when those old rich white guys who wore wigs and whose name most 12th graders in prestigious high schools don't know signed this bill and pretty much told another old rich English white guy wearing a wig to go fuck himself and that we were going to form our own country without his stupid tea, taxes, and with more kick ass things like fireworks and snowblowers. America, FUCK YEA!

And okay, maybe now it's more like a country that destroyed its Native Population, systematically destroyed it's non-white population, is run by an oligarchy of very very rich old white guys, is in currently in two semi-failing wars, with a giant oil spill, infiltrated with crappy pop music, reality shows that create heros and heroines outta steroid injecting alcoholics, and a population that is either wildly apathetic and cynical or completely crazy, unrealistic, and every sort of 'ist and 'ic you can think of (homophobic, racist, agist, sexist, fill in with your own ____ism).

But let's take a step back here......back to those guys in wigs and that bill they signed and all that nonsense and what it really means....

America, in a sense, is kind of like it's evil enemy Communism. It sounds good on paper, but often the execution of it becomes rather sloppy and piss poor and you end up having a lot of pissed off and disappointed citizens. Imagine if you will a country in which every man/woman equally has the right to pursue their own ideals of happiness however they see fit to do so regardless of minor differences like the color of their skin and the neighborhood they grew up in. I can't lie...that sounds pretty badass. And sure, capitalism may have definitely has set us back a while in making this an absolute reality, but even within this screwed up system there is still room for the fight towards making it better, something that not many other systems allow for. And yeah sometimes that fight gets digested into the 'ist and 'ic ideology, but it's still there! Some even argue that the goal of capitalism is to create a society in which the rich and those with the most work hard to help give back to those with least, in order to enrich society and the working class which will ultimately lead to an overall efficient country. We just haven't done a great job of doing that yet....

Look, I have every reason to hate this country. I'm a queer woman of color. My sister is somewhere in the middle east dodging mortars and bombs for a cause I nor she really understands. My college education is gonna set me back close to 40,000 dollas in debt, and despite all the smartness and privilege I do enjoy, I still have to assure the white men and women I encounter in my hometown that my name is not Sha'qwana and I don't wear weave.

But despite all that, I have a lot of faith in this place. I mean, I definitely know it's going to shit. But I do know that despite all the nasty things out there and the terrible effects greed and a lack of understanding of universal humanism is having on this country, that we as the little guys still have so much power to change it all. if we only realized it.

So I say to you, YOU, out there. You dissenters and cynics...follow a few steps to have a happier 4th of july.

1- If you are really upset about this oil spill and how much damage it's causing the entire ecosystem and environment of the golf coast---shut the fuck up, stop driving, stop using plastic, and stop buying half of the clothes, food, home items, and electronics that you buy.

Not gonna do that? That's okay, I didn't think so. Just stop whining and embrace the Armageddon you have willingly participated in.

2- If you do want to do something about huge energy companies destroying the Earth and in particular our own country, check out the film 'Gas land'. Find some more information about it by reading my write up on it and watching the trailer here.

3- We can't stop the wars or the massive amounts of money going into them, but we can do something to help those that our government is failing to help. If you're concerned about deficits in spending on education, the environment, and the arts, find a way to get connected to organizations that are trying to improve these areas within your own community. We can't always rely on a rockstar President to fix everything. Nor can we think that just because we got off of our sofas and put 'Jersey Shore' on pause for an hour to go flip a yellow switch and vote that we did all our civil duties. And citizens of this utopia gone bad, we have to take an active part in healing and helping each other. That's the room and freedom that has been granted to us by those old wigs, let's use it.

4- Finally, stop turning your brain into mush. Don't let your kids live off a diet of McDonalds. Do some exercising. Take a walk in your local park with your family. Support local artists and independent musicians. The internet is the miracle tool that has come to give you CHOICES people. And educated ones at that! We don't have to be stuck with the banal and mindnumbing anymore! Fight for your rights to not become the apathetic vegetables this country needs in order for nothing to get better.

5- Finally, go watch some fireworks. Or blow something up. At least you'll feel a little better.

Happy Fourth of July!

Cheers to a country that sucks at soccer and gay rights!

That much more to look/work towards....or something like that.

Job Wanted

New York--You kill me with how seriously you take yourself.

What happened to the days when someone walked into a place, said they were looking for work, and got hired if the manager thought they were a good kid?

Since when do I need a resume to fold clothes?

Or a cover letter to transfer VHDs to DVDs?

How do I even write that??

Like many of you, I am young, broke, and desperately in search of work. (luckily, I am not a college grad yet, otherwise I'd probably be crying in a corner*.) Here's the thing:

They say the economy is bad and there are no jobs available, but there are still tons of places (when not looking for slave labor interns) that are willing to pay some chumps to do some menial tasks (such as answering phones, pushing buttons, pretending to like people, folding things, standing there, taking up air, blinking, etc.). I see these places all the time, walking down the street, on craigslist, and in the fables my friends tell me of how they walked into a bar, asked for a job, and became a bartender with no experience what-so-ever.

What's so bothersome is the frontin' these shisters do, especially in NYC. Listen people, get real: Don't tell me that I need two references and a cover letter to work at your soon-to-be-closed boutique folding barely-there t-shirts, or that I'm gonna need at least 3 years of city experience to work at Uncle Zeek's Taco shack. Because its just not true. And furthermore, the last thing any of these employers want is a highly motivated enthusiastic worker who is looking to climb up the pay ladder and own the joint one day. Nuh-uh. You want someone who will work 4 days a week for $8.00 an hour doing whatever the hell you tell them too with minimal complaints. So you know what we should do instead of all this farcical "I am a really legit employer" "Well, I'm a highly qualified candidate" mumbo jumbo? We should just be real with each other.

I am a highly educated and highly impoverished college-student hipster-type kid just needing a place to work so that I can apply for food stamps. You are a wish-I-didn't-major-in-philosophy manager looking for someone to sit in a chair and answer phones/ mop the floor for 4 hours a day. You're not going to give me a raise, and I'm not going to ask for one. So let's cut the bullshit: you hire me, I make your office look good for a few hours, and we shake hands on Fridays. Sounds simple enough.

In conclusion,

Quit asking me to rack my brain trying to write a creative cover letter for a job that is only going to lead to boredom and utter waste of life.

* Just kidding recent grads, there is hope for you. Or you could always move to LA and suck a penis.

repost from dziga sounds

I'm reposting this here since I think it sorta covers both the areas of music and philosophising. But please, if you haven't yet, do move on over to dzigasounds. A lot will be coming outta there.

#hearts

You must be living under a rock of Gaga glitter, Nicki Minaj's pussy on your sideburns, and Drake pop culture references if you've missed the coming of the hipster national anthem, Edward Sharpe & the Magnetic Zero's folk ensamble love song "Home". With it's tamborines, whistles, and charming lyrics ("Alabama, Arkansas, I do love my ma 'n paw, but not the way that I do love you....home, let me go home. Home is wherever I'm with you.) the song is an instant sing-a-long sensation. But it's more than just that. "Home" hits the hearts of anyone who hears it. I must confess, after hearing a cover at a TSW party in Brooklyn, I ran all the way to the L train back to manhattan and the one I love, whistling till the doorstep. Lovers or friends, folks love to dance to the tune, kick their fake cowboy boots, and pretend their somewhere sunny. The music video embodies this feeling. Shot somewhere in Texas or California or Arizona or some...deserty like place, the official music video feels like Arthur Penn's Bonnie and Clyde, glorifying the journeys of two runaway youths in love and their gang of vagabond-like young friends. Watch it and try not to get captivated by its grainy footage, western allusions, and sunny skies that make us want to get up and go...some place....home? No, not that.

The truth is, "Home" speaks to the young, mustached, and feathered haired misfits of today because it and its accompanying video are the only home these kids know. Home is wherever a loved one is, or somewhere in the middle of nowhere and that speaks to the aimlessness (or abandonment?) of a youth culture that seems to find residence only within itself (and the L line).

Hipsters and the young have an obsession with living in the past, and I'm not talking about rocking gold chains like it was 1980. I'm talking all the way down to lifestyle and image quality. We kids of the late 80s to early 90s have grown up with only the baby boomer's memories of the 60's and 70's and our parents non-stop references to the good old days when things were just, for whatever reason, better. It's actually kind of sad. It's like we're always trying to live up to something. Our musicians are trying to be the new Jim Morrison's or Hendrixes, our activists aim to fall somewhere in between MLK and La Raza but fail miserably, while our fashionistas wear anything that was either made in 2010 to look like it came from 1968 or was made in 1968 and cost $210. And any relics from that era are quickly gobbled up into the vintage-culture machine and spit out in a way that some how retains its old soul ( see the new Gil Scott-Heron album, very appropriately called "I'm new here" on XL Recordings or Bobby Womack's and Lou Reed's guest appearances on the Gorillaz's new project Plastic Beach). Meanwhile, we squeemishly run away from anything that is too present, jadedly seeking adventures in cultural memories that we ourselves are too young to have even watched someone else experience.

I'm not sure what our problem is, or if we have run out of vision and creativity other than this kitsch-like rehash--but I do know that some great stuff is coming out of it. And holy moly oh me oh my, this song is the tip of the iceberg.

la, la, la, la take me home.

AHHHHH!!

How shameful is it that my first post in centuries is to inform you of a new blog??

Whatever, it is what it is.

I've started a new blog to give actual attention and space to what this blog was eventually going to become anyway: a music blog.

I know, super original right?

I needed it, I wanted it, I did it, and hopefully, you will like it.

Check it out here, it's called Dziga Sounds--a title very much inspired by the pseudonym Dziga Vertov.

I hope you enjoy it and now, I hope that I get off my lazy ass and actually start posting on the two cent peanut gallery once again.

'Cus it's still here, and now it will be solely for the purpose of....idk, sorting out my head.

Cheers loves, and please enjoy Dziga Sounds.