Archive for the ‘Music’ Category
Monday, May 12th, 2014
by Writing Battle Rap History
Sean “P. Diddy” Combs
Dr. Sean Combs, also known as “P.Diddy,” “Puff Daddy”, and “Big Homie,” among other names, had the honor of gracing the 2014 graduates of Howard University with the 146th Commencement Speech. He was honored by the university for the degree of Doctor of Humanities. There was quite a bit of controversy surrounding him being selected since he is a college dropout, and let’s be honest, because of who he is.
Combs is in no way refined in the pursuit of his ambitions, nor does he exercise subtlety in flaunting his riches. Every thing he does is big. I’m sorry – everything he does is grandiose; larger than life. Combs has no chill button and that kind of personality makes some people uncomfortable, especially someone who isn’t the most polished piece of silverware in the bunch.
Howard University has had a rough year financially. Former president, Sidney A. Ribeau suddenly stepped down last December after the university’s enrollment and credit score fell significantly under his leadership. The Howard board of trustees appointed interim president, Wayne A.I. Frederick in Ribeau’s place. The university announcing Combs as the commencement speaker in April was one of Frederick’s decisions that pumped new life into the school.
Combs as the key note speaker is a sign of the times and a paradigm shift for colleges on who they deem worthy for the position. Combs amassed his $700 million dollar fortune in an unconventional way, mostly through Hip-Hop. And though many of us love Hip-Hop, we love it when its in its place – rooted in it’s foundational elements, not when a genre that is still considered parvenu is being honored for its scholastic achievements.
Notwithstanding the backlash, Combs gave a memorable speech. He seemed a little out of his element and at times overly expressive in his gratitude, but that’s probably because he sincerely wanted to be accepted from the students and faculty as an honorable collegiate.
What I appreciated most about the speech was that it wasn’t coated with fancy language or presented like an essay, it was just straight talk in a way that only Diddy could deliver it. Wrapping up his speech, Combs profoundly details his early days at Uptown Records, when then founder, Andre Harrell fired a young Combs because he got too cocky. He was left without a job, an 8 1/2 month pregnant girlfriend, and a new home he purchased in Scarsdale, New York that he couldn’t afford. Click here to read the full article.
Tags:All's Fair in Sports and War, Bad Boy Records, commencement speech, Eddie Bailey, graduation, Howard University, Savoy Media Group, Sean "P. Diddy" Combs, The War Room, Uptown Records, War Room Sports, Writing Battle Rap History
Posted in Eddie Bailey, Entertainment, General, Hip-Hop, Music, Social | No Comments »
Friday, May 9th, 2014
by Writing Battle Rap History
Dr. Dre & Jimmy Iovine
Dr. Dre may become Hip Hop’s first billionaire. According to Gizmodo, as soon as next week Apple, Inc. may announce to the public it’s largest acquisition in the company’s history, a $3.2 billion dollar purchase of Dr. Dre and Jimmy Iovine’s, Beats Electronics headphones. Forbes Magazine recently listed the top five Hip Hop moguls who had the highest net worths, and Dr. Dre came in at number two just under Sean Combs, at an estimated $550 million dollar net worth. This deal would only add to his fortune as he is slated to make 1 billion dollars out of the deal. Click here to read the rest of this article.
Tags:All's Fair in Sports and War, Apple, Beats By Dre, Billionaire, Dr. Dre, Eddie Bailey, Jimmy Iovine, War Room Sports, Writing Battle Rap History
Posted in Eddie Bailey, Entertainment, General, Hip-Hop, Music | No Comments »
Friday, May 9th, 2014
by Writing Battle Rap History
Big Krit
“Mt. Olympus” is the funky ride to the galaxy of Cadillactica, Big K.R.I.T.’s forthcoming studio album. K.R.I.T. is Ole Miss’ pride and joy, magnolia tree-gravitas and all, he graciously stakes his claim as being a cut above the rest in “Mt. Olympus.” It’s becoming more common for rappers to either refer to themselves as God, or in K.R.I.T.’s case, refer to his stature in Hip-Hop as being god-like. Southerners rarely make those kinds of bold assertions when it comes to anything closely related to higher powers. Growing up in the south old folks are quick to tell you that God will not be mocked, but K.R.I.T. is more concerned with being respected for having lyrical muscle, rather than being seen as the run of the mill, molly-popping, turn-up rapper. Click here to read the full article.
Tags:All's Fair in Sports and War, Big Krit, Eddie Bailey, hip Hop, Mt. Olympus, Savoy Media Group, War Room Sports, Writing Battle Rap History
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Tuesday, May 6th, 2014
by Writing Battle History
Donald Sterling – Los Angeles Clippers franchise owner
The Donald Sterling ordeal was something else! After being surreptitiously recorded ranting his feelings about black people to his mistress, V. Stiviano, Sterling’s appallingly primitive views on race set in motion a tidal wave of disgust throughout the national media. The width of his racism was captured in his infamous quotes. Speaking of his black players, “I support them and give them food, and clothes, and cars, and houses.” He continues, “I’m just saying, in your lousy fxxxing Instagrams, you don’t have to have yourself walking with black people,” and “Don’t put him [Magic Johnson] on an Instagram for the world to see so they have to call me. And don’t bring him to my games.”
Though Stiviano is racially mixed, post-racial America’s charge on a boldly different perspective on race and race relations hasn’t capitulated Sterling’s D.W. Griffith-aesthetic. Because of this, NBA Commissioner, Adam Silver fined Sterling $2.5 million dollars in addition to banning him from the NBA “for life.” Among more interesting things is that the NBA is taking action to force Sterling to sell his $575 million dollar franchise, that could sell for upwards of $1 billion dollars. There are plenty of sharks roaming the shores of the LA Clippers’ franchise; filthy rich sharks, and some famed rappers are a part of this pod.
If the NBA’s board of governors can force Sterling to sell, a roll call of potential buyers are ready. With a combined net worth of over $60 billion dollars, the most likely to win a bidding war are business tycoons Oprah Winfrey, David Geffen and Larry Ellison. Guggenheim Partners, Magic Johnson, and Mark Walter are another group of bidders that have a good shot at the LA Clippers. The sharks that are least likely to win in a bidding war are rappers. Sean Combs, Dr. Dre, and Rick Ross have all publicly expressed interest but compared to the above mentioned, probably lack the capital needed to purchase a majority stake.
They can afford to be minority owners, however. Nelly is a minority owner of the Charlotte Bobcats and Jay-Z recently sold his minority stake in the Brooklyn Nets. And Drake has partnered with his hometown team, the Toronto Raptors, helping them with a variety of initiatives, including launching a clothing line in conjunction with the franchise. Click here to read the full article.
Tags:All's Fair in Sports and War, Basketball, Donald Sterling, Dr. Dre, Eddie Bailey, hip Hop, Jay-Z, Los Angeles Clippers, NBA, Nelly, Savoy Media Group, War Room Sports, Writing Battle Rap History
Posted in Eddie Bailey, Entertainment, General, Hip-Hop, NBA | No Comments »
Wednesday, April 30th, 2014
by Writing Battle Rap History
Carolina Chocolate Drops, 2014
The Carolina Chocolate Drops are one of the few black, old-time string bands that still exist today. Composed of lead vocalist, violinist, and banjoist, Rhiannon Giddens, multi-instrumentalists, Hubby Jenkins and Rowan Corbett, and cellist, Malcolm Parson, the Durham, North Carolina based quartet are a coming of age musical-medium that bridge African-American influenced folk music to modern musical themes with a 21st century interpretation.
The banjo, an instrument that has its origins in West Africa, is quintessential in the makings of music in America. As early as the 17th century, slaves were taught to play violins for their master’s entertainment. Slaves combined European harmonies they learned on the violin with the rhythmic and syncopated cadences from their native Africa that they played on the banjo. This cultivated into a sound that was uniquely African-American and was called “Negro Jigs.”
Joe Thompson
Before the Chocolate Drops became a group, they were inquisitive musicians that shared a common interest in learning more about string music, in particular, the African-American influence on string music of the 1920s and 30s in the Piedmont regions of North and South Carolina. When white musicians started to incorporate banjos in their sets, string music became associated with being “hillbilly“, mainly because black musicians started embracing blues music and as a result black string band traditions faded, while “hillbilly” became the precursor to country and bluegrass music. Wanting to preserve and share the black string band tradition, the Chocolate Drops sought the expertise of Joe Thompson, a legendary fiddler from North Carolina who comes from a line of black string band musicians. Thompson exposed them to old-time fiddling during jam sessions at his home. The Carolina Chocolate Drops initially formed as a tribute band for Thompson before his passing in 2012 at the age of 93, but shortly thereafter, discovered success beyond him. Click here to read the full review.
Tags:All's Fair in Sports and War, Carolina Chocolate Drops, Dom Flemons, Durham, Eddie Bailey, Genuine Negro Jig, Hubby Jenkins, Joe Thompson, Justin Robinson, Malcolm Parson, Negro Jigs, North Carolina, Rhiannon Giddens, Rowan Corbett, Savoy Media Group, String Bands, The War Room, War Room Sports, Writing Battle Rap History
Posted in Eddie Bailey, Entertainment, General, Music | No Comments »
Tuesday, April 22nd, 2014
by Writing Battle Rap History
Southernplayalisticcadillacmuzik cover art
There was a time when it wasn’t cool to be from the south. At one point, southern rap wasn’t considered a genre in Hip Hop. That fact was made apparent at the 1995 Source Awards in New York City when Atlanta duo, OutKast, accepted their award for Best New Group. Overshadowed by the ensuing East Coast-West Coast conflict that took center stage that night, OuKast were barely noticed, aside from the hail storm of boos they received when they accepted their award from an already divided audience between coastal lines. New York, the epicenter and gatekeepers of Hip Hop, weren’t ready to fully embrace southern artists. Sonically, OutKast’s debut album,Southernplayalisticadillacmuzik, was out of context with New York’s traditional Boom Bap, kick-snare-kicks-and-hi hat, drum pattern, that helped define the region’s sound in the early 90′s, so the deep fried southern delicacy that OutKast cooked up was an acquired taste for most Hip Hop elitists.
Outkast 1995
“The south got something to say.”
Atlanta is literally a city in a forest. It’s unique among most major cities because of its unusual grandeur of thick forest that canopy the city’s landscape. The only thing that is penetrable above the forest ceiling is the city’s skyscrapers that peak some resemblance of urban life. Atlanta, as an unlikely place for Hip Hop became a hub for the genre, thanks to music moguls like Jermaine Dupree, Babyface and LA Reid, who established their musical roots in Atlanta’s growing market. Pioneers, Big Boi and Dre’ (now Andre’ 3000), who formed OutKast in 1992, would help to change the city’s music landscape forever when LaFace Records released Southernplayalisticadillacmuzikon April 26, 1994. Click here to read the full review.
Tags:All's Fair in Sports and War, Eddie Bailey, hip Hop, Outkast, Savoy Media Group, The War Room, War Room Sports, Writing Battle Rap History
Posted in Eddie Bailey, Entertainment, General, Hip-Hop, Music | No Comments »
Thursday, April 17th, 2014
by Writing Battle Rap History
Screen shot from “Bxtches Be Like” Music Video
A few days ago Rap Radar posted a music video by recording artist Rico Love from his Discrete Luxury EP, entitled Bitches Be Like (which I’ll stylize as Bxtches Be Like). Amused by the title, my first impulse was to click the link to humor myself of what I thought I was about to hear. Instead, I heard something very different. A type of twisted social commentary is what I call it.
Bxtches Be Like, for those who are not well versed in social media, is an Internet colloquialism for describing what women stereotypically do: with the word “bxtches” replacing “women” as a name that is attached to the stereotypical behavior.
On the outset the song appears to be a loving but firm discourse. Love topics particular women who chase after material possessions and meaningless relationships because they don’t know their own worth. “You were always the life of the party/But when you gonna give your life to somebody/It’s like you find more pain than pleasure/You know you can’t play that game forever/How long you gon’ carry on, carry on like this/Different city every night still looking for a nxgga who gon’ wife it.” Click here to read the full review.
Tags:All's Fair in Sports and War, Bitches Be Like, Eddie Bailey, hip Hop, R&B, Rico Love, Savoy Media Group, The War Room, War Room Sports, Writing Battle Rap History
Posted in Eddie Bailey, Entertainment, General, Hip-Hop, Music, R&B | No Comments »
Monday, April 14th, 2014
by Writing Battle Rap History
Z Cover Art
Album Rating System 4 out of 5 records
If you’ve ever rummaged through a girl’s diary to know her private thoughts, you’ve probably run across some pretty revealing truths. To get caught violating that privacy is hell to pay. In the case of Top Dawg Entertainment (TDE) artist SZA, she has willingly left her diary unlocked for the world to see.
Z is a chronicle of a deeply passionate teenage love affair with the ebb and flows of life as an adolescent and a young adult. SZA narrates her experiences through the lens of her fractured vanity mirror. Defragmenting the pieces of her life into a complete portrait is SZA’s process of creating her own masterpiece, which is discovering herself. Click here to read the full review.
Tags:Album Review, All's Fair in Sports and War, R&B, Savoy Media Group, SZA, The War Room, War Room Sports, Writing Battle Rap History
Posted in Eddie Bailey, Entertainment, General, Music, R&B | No Comments »
Saturday, April 5th, 2014
by Eddie Bailey
The Genesis
Queensbridge Houses are the largest housing projects on the North American continent. It sits along the East River just north of the Queensborough (59th Street) Bridge that connects Manhattan to Queens. Looking down from the bridge on the 96-unit, six-story project rooftops looks like a labyrinth of Y- shaped buildings that span across a small landscape. The projects, clothed with weathered brick, gleam in the sky’s foreground like peculiar urban pillars that are definitive reminders of inner city blight.
Queensbridge Houses
These same projects that raised numerous stars like MC Shan, Roxanne Shante’, Marly Marl, Craig G, Metta World Peace and Mobb Deep, also raised one of Hip Hop’s most celebrated MCs. Nas. When MC Shan wrote his battle lyrics during The Bridge Warsagainst KRS-One, he was unwittingly prophetic when he said this about Queensbridge MCs.
This is the place where stars are born
And we are only the ones that can’t be worn out
– MC Shan, The Bridge, 1985
On April 19, 1994, Hip Hop was delivered a gift. Unwrapped of its magnetic coated, plastic film, was a cassette tape that changed the course of East Coast Hip Hop. Illmatic, Nas’ debut album, released by Columbia Records, sold an underwhelming 59,000 copies in its first week. With barely a peep of recognition outside of the East Coast upon its release,Illmatic managed to become one of the most important albums in Hip Hop history. Click here to read the full review.
Tags:All's Fair in Sports and War, Eddie Bailey, hip Hop, Illmatic, Illmatic XX, Nas, Operation Battle Rap, Queensbridge, Savoy Media Group, The War Room, Writing Battle Rap History
Posted in Eddie Bailey, Entertainment, Hip-Hop, Music | No Comments »
