The Clipse Listening Party at The Vault

Some of you may have seen this, but the majority of you probably have not. Im genuinely anticipating this album. Many of you know i am a hip-hop proponent/enthusiast and there aren't too many albums or songs these days that stick to me like rice. I just me these guys in August we kicked it like we had been homeboys for years. This is a clip that got me excited maybe it gets you excited as well. The second video is a small piece from when they hanging with me at Burn Rubber

Fresh Framework

This is a display of artwork over in Paris; a 5x5 sensoric installation that consists of an aluminum plexiglass structure which is illuminated by 6750 LED's. I actually don't think that they display anything particular but the artistry of it is what snagged my attention. Many of your know i rant about art and the lack of it in the States therefore im paralyzed with curiosity whenever i see this sort of work. Feel free to just gander and let it inspire you however it may.

Ro Spit Album Cover Contest

Hello world, First I need you to watch this video and pass the information along.

We are having a contest to see who can develop the best cover art for Ro Spit's album. I need all of my graphic designers/artists or those that think they can make something dope, to visit http://www.rospit.com/ and check out the rules and the details. This is something that we are going to sell worldwide and it would be a huge credit to whomever wins. Its a huge opportunity to bolster your resume and recieve some accolades. If you have any additional questions you can hit me up, leave a comment, or email us at hiphop@rospit.com .

Obama's Free Time

http://moneywatch.bnet.com/career-advice/blog/other-8-hours/how-president-obama-spends-his-other-8-hours/325/

This is a small article that was sent to me by my man J. Marsh. I thought it was quite interesting. For those that want some insight concerning how the president spends his free time, this has some utility. In a vague way it maps out what his routine is; but i personally felt it was a little motivational from the standpoint of allotting time. Many of us are busy but when you make time for things you have a greater propensity to get them done, don't just try to fit them in wherever. If the president of the United States can make some time for the things he cares about so can we.

Marshmallow Dreams

I found this on the BBC blog, but i thought i was quite entertaining yet relevant. Watch this experiment conducted with marshmallows, kids, and sheer gut-wrenching visceral temptation. But in a way this is how we still are. Kids can be simple reflections of our complex adult persona. But this can also operate as a simple reminder for us...have at it.

Thank You Mr. West

Much of this has been through the wringer already and im going to approach this with a sense of delicacy. Kanye's actions of taking the microphone from Taylor Swift was nothing that i condone and i actually feel it was out of pocket. However most of life is layered and this is no different, occasionally things get in the way and nullify the good intentions or scramble the hearts meaning.

I've heard people say that he is pompous and they will never support him... but i think that's the perspective of someone who doesn't see the complete scope of the situation. First lets make this point Taylor won "Best Female Video" and Beyonce proceeds to win "Video of the Year". This is like saying you didn't make the playoff but you won the title, totally paradoxical. Of all the people i have talked to, not a single person has been able to make sense of this for me. MTV is the same network that a couple of years ago gave Britney Spears the main stage at the VMAs and gave Kanye a side room to perform in. Here is the context, Britney had not been doing anything but rehab, she hadn't been making music and she was definitely out of game shape to even return on a national stage such as that. It is utterly ridiculous to surrender her the stage in denial of Kanye who was killing the networks and radio alike with his Graduation album.

You see MTV plays politics and charades, for an honest and authentic artist this is your greatest fear. Kanye doesn't have a malicious bone in his body concerning music, he loves it, perhaps to a fault. His gripe is completely with MTV not with Taylor, i don't think in his tactless rant he meant to decry Taylor, she was merely a byproduct of the fight with the network which is part of the machine. He actual prefaces his declaration with "yo Taylor Im really happy for you ..." He meant everything he said, he really was happy for Taylor. See the thing with Ye is that he perhaps is honest to a detriment. If he were to craft his method better perhaps his blow would have landed more effectively and the public would not be blinded by his incurtious actions. But trust me his heart is in the right place. Just like when Kanye stuck up for the people in Katrina with the George Bush comment, the man honestly means well. The most intriguing facet of this is that he fought for someone else. And not to say that Ye is the only one passionate about his craft (because he's not) but he one of the few within his circle that is passionate enough along with a platform to keep the validity of music achievements. If you follow the mans career, when he came out on his first album he said " at the tender age of six she was arrested for the sit-ins, with that in my blood i was born to be different" referring to his grandfather taking his mother with him to the sit-ins. He believes in standing up for what he considers are the ills of the music game. And unfortunately that is something that i cannot be mad at, granted he could certainly have crafted his tactic better. Generally we forget that everything has two sides, if Kanye wasn't the dominant personality he is, we would never know his name. He had to basically kick the door in because nobody was even giving him a shot with his music career. Certainly becoming more refined would serve him well but when you allow people to be themselves you must accept the good with the bad.

I've watched the Taylor video that won. MTV is "reaching". I'll leave it at that. And its not about how many albums the person sold its about the video and "Single ladies" has penetrated darn near every culture to the point where they spoofed it on Saturday Night Live, that's penetrating. Whether we think the video was great or not the impact was certainly monolithic and obviously MTV agrees giving her the "Video of the Year" award. There is certainly contradiction there and for honest people (trust me I know) it eats you alive when people are deceptive. Some people have cynically responded that he knew what person to do that to and that he calculated this. I can't argue his calculations or not, but you would be hard pressed to get the proper factors to align again. Kanye ONSTAGE next to a microphone, overt bias occurs, network has previously snubbed him. You can make a case either way.

I watched his apology on Leno and he emphasized that he has nothing against Taylor and feels tremendously horrid for degrading her music ability and her moment because those weren't his intentions. He would never want to take anything away from people musically, that would be counter productive to his quest. He simply has too much love and passion for music to watch people politic'it. I don't think people really understand K.West and just because he isn't always politically correct doesn't make him a bad guy. I personally think we need more Kanye's. We all hear of the ills of the music industry and how biased it can be. I've watched other artist gripe about it and nobody ever does anything and for that matter i can't particularly take exception when someone finally steps up and says something. Kanye isn't quite jaded like most of the world, remember that approach we all had as children, when things were wrong we said so; we didn't look at life and say "oh this isn't the right time somebody might get offended". He often holds that same approach. Ye doesn't do this for fame or glitz, as a matter of fact he hates seeing the paparazzi and the like. In his apology he said "i have to accept that i am a celebrity", indicating that he fights with this fact; in his brain he wants to be "A real boy" and live in a real world. Any mistakes made blame it on the mind not the heart. Remember "Everything im not made me everything i am"

Shawn Carter/Rhapsody

Although many have seen it within a 24 hour span (just the way of the internet world). I would still like to showcase this for those who have not seen it. Whomever came up with this idea did a good job of implementing it. Jay strikes poses from his album covers and smoothly transitions from one to the next...it looks nice. This is a collaboration with Rhapsody for his upcoming album Blueprint III. Check it out

Flying without Wings and a Prayer

Mike Vick was signed Thursday. Im typing Sunday. Generally im not a knee-jerk reaction type of guy. I have gathered my thoughts along with others to compose what i think is an interesting dichotomy of America. Those that loathe Vick, and those that enamor him. I think this topic has uncovered more about cultural differences and principles than any discussion has in a while.

Vick signed with the Philadelphia Eagels 8/13/09, the announcement was made as a Philadelphia Eagles preseason game was simultaneously taking place. As this transpires i hear reports that some fans decided to leave the game in a fruitless preseason protest. There was one lady who was crying and stated that she has to now give up her season tickets. I've seen facebook status' that wished the worst of occurrences to Vick and all sorts of venomous outrage. As i observed and quelled my own statements i realized an interesting point; this is not about written laws its about moral codes.

In society we are technically governed by laws and unwritten moral codes/laws. There have been plenty of athletes to break the "Law", but none so viciously ostracized. He has served his sentence but yet the public arena looks to brutally bury him, however not everyone. From what i have observed there is generally a culture/race line that is drawn separating the furious from the forgiving. Generally in the European-American circle dogs are obviously more revered than in the African-American circle, so although it was a felony one sector really has no quarrels while the other sector boils over with rage. So although this was a crime committed i think it is paramount to understand that the community that Vick has been apart of virtually his entire life generally did not hold this behavior in contempt, even though it is against the law. As a matter of fact there were others football players who spoke when the actions were first uncovered and felt this was no big deal. Before a stone is thrown at my laptop, please understand that i think the actions were foolish. However there are things people do everyday that are illegal but morally it elicits very little outcry or concern, such as smoking/selling weed. See i've known quite a few popular weed sellers and no one makes a stink. Im sure that is how his dog-fighting ring worked, his background and those he was involved with saw no fuss to make, thus he was not persuaded to change.

The amount of lamenting against Vick is uncanny to anything i've witnessed in sports. But on the other hand why are African-Americans so laissez-faire about dogs? I hate to become a historian but one school of thought builds from the idea that African-Americans were often chased down by dogs of slave masters so the connotation of "dogs" isn't a pleasant one. And on the reverse side of that one can make a case that this is why European-Americans have embraced them so; they really have taken this personal, but it is so unclear why. People continued to root for Dallas when they signed Pacman Jones and people also rooted for the Ravens when Ray Lewis had the murder trial. These two were never convicted but the people hated Vick before he was convicted.

I hold the idea that everyone deserves a chance to be forgiven. Sometimes it takes someone like that to reach other people. What will you ever get out of forever banning him from the NFL, that benefits society none! We have all made some mistakes, some more public than others but it bothers me to see so much vile commentary tossed around like everyone is perfect. He paid his dues and i think we need to move on and continue to make this world better, not continue to try to hold people down. Besides he's playing football, not running for Mayor, where his character needs to be tried and true. I don't think people realize how much hate tears down the world. Look at what Martin Luther King Jr. accomplished by reciprocating love, he could have easily looked to kill everyone that had hung, tortured, and abused his people, but he chose love and learning instead and accomplished wayyyy more. Apparently we have given him a holiday and don't even know what for. Although i can understand some not liking this gentleman, but this is bigger for some people, and this hate has to stop.

Fruit Post-It

I just like these and thought y0u might as well. Its from Japanese studio, D-Bros. They are probably extremely hard to obtain. Enjoy

America and Health Care

This is an episode from the the Daily Show with Jon Stewart (with limited commercials, thank me later) about Theodore Roosevelt; but more importantly the health care dialogues that are taking place in the nation. There has been lamenting across the nation on town hall meetings opposing the new proposals for health care. I watched Obama speak for about 45 minutes on CNN explaining a plan for universal health care, I will assert that he laid quite a bit of the details out in a rudimentary fashion. Although i have not seen the proposals written down, which i suppose i should, the plan provided what most deem to be relatively logical and feasible solutions with the only suspect factor being the money involved to pay and support such a plan. I've read a few things in the New York Times as well. I say all that to say these people have lost their minds.

The problem I often encounter when dealing with hostile citizens is that they often have no basis for argument and refuse to participate in productive dialogue. Watch as excerpts from meetings around the nation are consolidated and highlighted on the Daily Show, showing just how far we have to go.