Another Birthday Shout-Out

Now, I tend to try to leave all the music related things to my lil sis Le Chele. But as she mentioned before, I am definitely a music head, so I couldn't let this opportunity pass by. That being said, I have to give a birthday shout out to probably the most hated (cause there are too many jealous people in the world) producer, rapper, and artist in hip hop.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY YEEZY!

Why is he so hated? Maybe cause he don't give a flying fuzz about what others have to say about his rap game. Maybe its' because he can rock things like this and get away with it. It could still be because of Taylor Swift don't understand why she's so popular.  It might also be because he done messed with some of the baddest (depending on who you ask) girls in the game (Amber Rose, Selita Ebanks, and Kim K. to name a few). Or it could be because of this:

I remember falling out laughing when I saw this still do. Now this was ballzy and so like Kanye West. He pulled no punches and told it like it is, and I appreciated that.

Now maybe his lyrics aren't always the most appropriate and come off misogynistic I will still bang to them, sue me.  But you can't hate on his game. He is undoubtedly one of the most talented producers and artists of my generation. He can do something like this one of my favorite songs from him:


Kanye West throw some D's remix by superyanel
and then do something like this (another favorite):

He is one of my favorites and I will still argue that I loved 808s and Heartbreak. It is what it is. You can hate all you want, but dude has balls and the talent to back it up. So imma take a lil sip from my cup (yall need to get up on the E&J) and send out a cheers to Kanye West.

HAPPY 34TH BIRTHDAY YEEZY!

AN: He can still get it. Yeah I said it!

I Do Not Give a Monkey's D*ck About Anthony Weiner

I don't have much else to say but seriously, WHO CARES! The fascination with sex scandals are commonplace in American politics and media-driven distraction from more important issues is nothing new. However, there is something about this Weiner story that really aggravates the hell out of me. I'm not sure if it is my continued frustration with the poor coverage of recent tornado disasters or the sheer foolishness of it all. I just can't stand hearing about it. It's a damn shame that after yesterday's confession, this story will not be going anywhere for at least another week. UGH!

Happy Birthday You Sexy Motherf*cker!

Sisters and brothers, I must announce that today is a very special edition of Throwback Tuesdays! Today marks the birthday of the Man, the Myth, the Legend...Prince! I'm still trying to find my rhythm with writing these Throwbacks but I can ease myself with this one because this artist doesn't even need an introduction, a bio or anything. He's fuckin Prince!!!

This is probably the best terrible movie EVAH! With a performance like the one above, I can't imagine why the Oscars passed him by that year.

THIS IS THE BEST PRINCE SONG EVAH! Point. Blank. Period. Yo, I'm in my basement, sippin', eating cheese doodles and rockin' so hard, can't nobody tell me I'm not 40/40!

prince - little red corvette

Is this his biggest hit or is it When Doves Cry?? Purple Rain?? Diamonds and Pearls??

Sista Fiore Scott considers this to be his best song. (Btw, my absolute favorite day spent with her was actually at a Purple Rain sing-a-long concert in Prospect Park, Brooklyn. No sarcasm nor snark, it was the best day in my life.) Anyhoo, in my humble opinion, when you have an artist like Prince, it is really hard to choose a favorite. Although his success began to wane in the early 90's, 'Pink Cashmere' really did reinforce his brilliance not only as a artist, but as a songwriter also. I LOVE Prince, man...He's incredibly gifted and beautiful. A toast to you, Prince! Hopefully I'll catch you on your next tour

These are just a few of my fav Prince songs. I couldn't decide on just one. You know why? Because its fuckin Prince!

Happy Birthday Darling Prince!!!!

Color me Sweet

Hola Folk-

I started my morning off pretty well- I read one of my favorite blogs, www.verysmartbrothas.com, ate oatmeal and had the most delicious iced coffee. To really top things off the topic of today's VSB post really resonated with me. Long story short, Champ suggests that we find new ways to praise Black women and not just recycle the word 'strong.'

C'mon we've all heard it: Black women are strong or she's a strong Black woman or even, damn she strong!

VSB's point is that by using strong we are subtley referencing qualities that are perceived as non-feminine. And you know what? I agree. I am tired of hearing a Black woman called strong for things like, always having to defend herself + her people, always being the one to pick up the broken pieces when everyone else has given up, or always having to be the one to make sure everyone else is OK.

In addition to strong, how about sweet! Just think, when is the last time a Black woman in the popular media was called 'sweet'.

New Words to Associate w. Black Women:
sweet, warm, kind, endearing, calm, humble... what are some other 'new' adjectives you would assign to Black women?

Sick Passenger on Train

If you're from NY and you're a mass transit user then you know about the sick passenger on the train. The person who is in some different cart or different train altogether that has your train suspended in that dark ass tunnel where gangster rats with face tattoos might try to stick you for your paper. You have no idea what happened to the person. Zero. They're just sick. Heart attack or hangover or a cold or a knife wound; you don't know. The only thing the train crew informs you over that gravelly ass speaker system is:

We have train traffic up ahead due to a sick passenger. As soon as it's clear up ahead, we'll proceed. Please be patient.

But last Friday, I was that sick passenger. And it scared the fuck out of me.

On Fridays, I have this ritual of going to get a manicure and/or pedicure, might pick up a book from Barnes & Noble but definitely buying a burrito from Chipotle. I stay in the house, I read, I chill. It's me time. Not some us, or some we, but some me time. *Sing it ladies*

I actually didn't feel like going though. I just wanted a burrito and a book. So I picked up my burrito and got on the train like any other Friday.

While standing on the 4 train, holding on to the middle pole connected to the seats, my heart started racing like I couldn't catch my breath. Just beating out of control. To the point that I seriously contemplated sitting on the floor.

At some point, I realized I was having problems holding myself up. I turned my head to look out the window to see if we were near a station and I just couldn't hold up my head. I leaned it against the pole and a few people started asking "is she okay?"

I wasn't.

I couldn't catch my breath, I couldn't stand, and now, my vision was blurring. The woman in front of me asked if I needed a seat and I don't remember my answer.

All I remember is falling forward.

Luckily I fell into the seat. Even luckier, I didn't hit my head. But scarily, I don't know what the fuck happened to me. I came to a few seconds later with people offering me fruit and asking if I was okay. And now that I was sitting, I was. My vision cleared, heart still pounding but I was okay.

But I was scared as fuck.

Because I have no idea what the fuck happened to me.

I went to the emergency room because the same thing happened to my uncle before he was diagnosed with diabetes. He almost went into a diabetic coma (blood sugar of over 800). Between the nurses and ER physician (who I only saw for like 3 minutes which is a whole 'nother story), I had my vitals taken and analyzed. And they found nothing wrong.

Nothing. So on the bright side, I'm healthy. Healthy weight, healthy blood pressure, healthy heart. On the dark and stormy night side, it just happened out of nowhere. So it could just happen again. And I'm not comfortable with that.

For now though, I feel great.

I hope it lasts.