Lupe Fiasco- Im Beamin

Once again my insatiable thirst for quality has been slightly quelled. I present my main man Lupe. You gotta love, i mean you just do. Shout out to my man @Mosologist.

M. Obama & Ji. Biden in Haiti

I didn't know the White House was into posting videos, for now i will roll with it although i pray im not empowering something i'll regret later. However, Michelle and Jill went down to Haiti now that some of the national attention has subsided and took a moment to personally observe the damage as well as sit down with some dignitaries. I think its a good gesture. Aside from the ladies examining the city i found some of the images captivating. I learned a little bit as well, as i was previously unaware that every last school had been eradicated. Things like holding classes in school buses and such just remind me of how far they still have to go. I found the video quite interesting so as always I'm willing to share.

Gang Starr - Mass Appeal

When this song hit the circuit i was only a tyke, the year was 1994 and i was a spry 10 years old. I remember perching myself right at the tip of the couch so that i could firmly plant both my feet on the floor and lean as close as i could towards the television that really wasn't that far away. The volume was up just enough so that i could catch every syllable of Guru's rhymes but not too loud so that the sound escaped the den (but those drums give it away every time). In 1994 my parents weren't too fond of hip-hop let alone the notion of their 10 year-old son plunging himself in the music so carelessly. The point is, I used to kick back with The Box and get into my zone when this song came on. I would later own Full Clip: A decade of Gang Starr and pump it through my headphones in my reclining posture, still spry, but now a more cultured hip-hop high-schooler. So as Guru passes away i just wanted to reflect a little bit and think about some of the good times i had. Here's the actual video (I couldn't embed)

"And for my peeps I truly care/ Cause without some of them I wouldn't be here, And they all know how I feel Cause suckers be like playin themselves to have mass appeal"

Dateline: Detroit

Just saw a special on Detroit via Dateline, it was very moving. It moved people to reaction which is what good television does right? My social networking time lines were roiled by the depiction which i felt was largely accurate.

The piece touched on standard problems such as crime, education, housing, and money. Standing in a position without strings attached i think the looming problem is the what we value and our blind loyalty. One can gather a pretty accurate assessment of the city just from looking around, the grime and frowziness of the city tell the story with pristine clarity. You can tell what people care about by what they take care of, living in the city you are prone to hear many patrons professing their love and dedication, but its seeing it that usually presents the problem. Regularly visited establishments don't even have the decency to paint chipped outer shells, pull weeds out of the cracked cement, and put their best presentation forward but the catch is we accept it. The trash floating across sidewalks doesn't do much for the argument of love either. Aesthetics matter, firm believer, indeed i am. Detroit is simply one large eyesore. As a child i would come from out of town and the visuals of Detroit would without fail punch me right in the cornea every time i returned.

One of the stats mentioned was that there are 400 liquor stores within the city limits and concurrently the city is void of a major grocery store. Some things just ought not be so. The reality that the public school system was in such dire straits that the nations government had to send in an appointed official to try to salvage the school system speaks volumes, i do not believe any other city has needed such (I'm welcome to corrections, if i am wrong). High schools don't have running water in their science labs, small problem, however on top of many others it weighs tremendously. The city has a crime rate seven times higher than New York per capita, yes i said seven times. The argument that every city has problems fatigues easily in this conversation. I do not believe this was mentioned in the special but I've witnessed one of the most unprofessional, unproductive, and immature city councils in modern government (im sure of it). Arguing like children and talking about what people look like in city meetings among other trivial things make me scratch my head as to how these people are even remotely qualified to be in the positions they are in.

I started on this because many people seemed to be offended but becoming defensive isn't the right way to mend this thing. I had a friend that wrote, granted it was Facebook, "...unless you're going to tell on your friends and family that's selling drugs and robbing, you can't change Detroit". This statement is starkly accurate, the morals that we have that keep us from pushing each other to be better push us behind the eight ball. Many of the younger demographic 30 and below still finds time to honor Blade Icewood, a drug dealer who rapped on the side. In fact he's probably considered city royalty. For the record this isn't an obscure sentiment. The people of Detroit can be a very loving people but for the most part it seems that they just have not been taught what to love and care for. We accept and expect less. I do not want the people of Detroit to be so offended all the time, its like sticking up for your alcoholic uncle when indeed he is an alcoholic. We have to be pragmatic and stop trying to cover everything up and shift attention elsewhere. There are indeed some good things about the city but honestly they are few and far between. The city of Detroit once thrived and it can certainly do so again but the mindset of the people needs a major renaissance and a guidance on where they need to go.

If you want to catch some visuals and audio head over here.

A New Breed of Coupon

I did some Sunday reading on the NY Times, which we know is a publication i have a strong affinity for, and i learned something about a certain variety of coupons that we use. The popularity of internet-based coupons grew 268 percent in 2009, we didn't think the marketing guru's were going to let that trend go quietly under the radar did we?

A particular company RevTrax (the only company mentioned) has derived coupons that are able to compile and store information thus creating customer profiles that can be stored. Many of the printable coupons or those sent to mobile phones contain information in their bar codes that often have the ability to denote what search terms were used to find the coupon, internet address, and in some cases even Facebook information. We, the consumers don't have the ability to look and see what information is compiled, they simply appear to be regular coupons to us. For retailers and companies RevTrax offers a bit more information than one of the industry leaders in web marketing, Google. Google provides feedback about what search terms are popular and what gets clicked but does not provide information about who clicks, it appears to have been done in the spirit of protecting consumer information.

RevTrax works a lot with image-rich ads and captures the information every time a customer uses the coupons. If you click an advertisement it may take you to a different page than what you would find if you just searched for it, although the pages may look the same; the difference is primarily behind the scenes.

If you want the full article you can go here. It is important to be aware of the changes taking place around us, this is something that all consumers should be aware of.

Curren$y// Pac Div// Ro Spit 4/10!

Tomorrow April 10th there is quite a bit going on at the Music Hall, this commercial should get you all the information you need. However its a exclusive fashion show with some very special guest. Tickets are available at Ticketmaster, Music Hall box office, and Burn Rubber.

Ro Spit x Marvwon at Live Mixtape Recording

We were down in Austin, TX for the SXSW music conference and we stopped by this live mixtape recording, and what ensued was Ro and Marv having a little fun with the crowd. Its nothing here to see but hip-hop. By the way Marv did something special on the microphone, I know i was blown away.