Welcome to another installment of:
JEAN GRAE’S HOME FOR GIFTED DRAGONS! The name Jean Grae is a moniker for my favorite MC; however, it is also the moniker of one of the original X-Men who grew, resided, learned, and trained at the Xavier's School for Gifted Youngsters; hence,
Jean Grae’s Home for Gifted Dragons! Now this in no-way suggest that Jean Grae is the mother of Hip-Hop or the boss of any one; what this is, is a collective! A collective I named and would like to put together in the name and honor of Jean Grae. A COLLECTIVE OF DJs, MCs, GRAFF ARTIST, B-BOYS & B-GIRLS, and BEAT BOXERS to use their powers for the benefit of sucker MCs & DJs, humanity, and to prove mutant DJs and MCs can be heroes that deserve more recognition for their craft than getting of late...
Let’s be clear-Jean Grae as an artist and a person means the world to me! Through her music, Hip-Hop, and fate I have connected with a special human being and gained a friend. So I will continue to selflessly promote and spread her brand to the World. So now I present to you:
Twitter, Hip-Hop, and You: Emcee Tribute (Occupy Mainstream #OccMS)
Definitions:
Yin and Yang
Two forces in the universe, according to a Chinese theory: yin is the passive, negative force, and yang the active, positive force; balance.
Grassroots
The common or ordinary people, especially as contrasted with the leadership or elite; the origin or basis of something; the basic or primary concept, rule, part, or the like.
***********************************************
"They only say Hip-Hop is dead cause that DOPE shit is underground"~Joe Budden Freestyle
That bar, for all intent and purposes, is a factual statement. The mainstream rap genre (don’t and can’t [in good conscience] call it Hip-Hop and in some instances, it’s not even rap!) has effectively dictated what Hip-Hop and Rap is to the massive. They expertly have done this from two avenues: 1) consumer purchase and 2) from within.
Let’s tackle these two points individually:
1) Consumer purchase-it is often stated that 70% of Hip-Hop consumers are white, suburban teens. I couldn’t find any factual data to accurately back this up because no hard demographic study has ever been conducted on hip-hop's consumers. Are these percentages true? Or are these just sound bites and headlines to promote mainstream artist to fit the mold/image of major record executives to promote record sales and generate income. I don’t know the answer to these questions; however, what I do know is this, major record executives push what sales. I would bet diamonds to doughnuts that the majority of radio and record executives wouldn’t know Real, True, Authentic Hip-Hop if Hip-Hop walked up to them in the daytime, with a bright neon sign and punched them in the nose but what I wouldn’t bet on is this...music is big business and with big business comes big money. Major radio and record executives are greedy business persons and would sell drugs openly, though morally wrong, if it were legal to do so; whatever it takes to generate income and line their pockets would work for them so if authentic Hip-Hop sold they would push it!
2) From Within- I have my theories when Hip-Hop changed, in my opinion for the worst, but one thing is for sure, it did change. Change is not synonymous with evolution though. Hip-Hop hasn’t evolved into what is being dictated in media and entertainment. It is a humiliating and embarrassing as a B-Boy and a huge fan that Music Television (MTV) and Black Entertainment Television (BET) are more known for sitcoms and show programming than their music; especially BET! It is absurd and foolish for the BET Hip-Hop Awards contained NO HIP-HOP minus a couple performers and except for the Rap Ciphers (I know they spelled it with a ‘Y’ but I’m grown and the ‘Y’ doesn’t automatically make it Hip-Hop); this awards show was one of those programmed sitcoms...extremely laughable! Baggy pants and wheat Tims have been substituted for skinny jeans and high end, clown shoes. But it’s more than just dress; it’s speech/vernacular, it’s ideology, it’s common knowledge/sense within the culture of Hip-Hop! Dumb downed artist were put into positions based on album sales and associations. Artist that were and are mediocre at best were sold a dream and given cash advances in order to cash in on paydays. What this did was give major record executives the means to get into the world of authentic Hip-Hop and add their brand based solely on what would sale in order to fund the cash advances and their pockets. ...BRILLIANT!
Business speaking, this is a brilliant business model. This is the same shit we see all the time in professional sports business practices, the money in politics (i.e. OWS), and in entertainment, more notably Hip-Hop, so why would music be any different....let’s take action!
We as a Hip-Hop culture, community, and consumers can take this back. We do not have to go after every cornball artist and their lame, cornball fans. Those fans are loyal and unwavering so they’re not budging. They don’t get it because they don’t want to get it. These artist and their fans are in the category of confused, mislead, misinformed, and/or uninformed. We can start this effort of getting back to the basics by eliminating the previous two points. How? Let’s demand more from radio, television, and record execs; also, let’s start calling “a spade a spade.” There are DJs & MCs out now who are doing their part! They are consistently dropping that dragon fire! So why are people still saying there isn't no good music out there. ARE YOU FUCKING KIDDING ME!!!! This call to action is for Hip Hop fans, B-Boys, B-Girls, the confused, uninformed, misinformed, and the mislead.
There was a time when Rap was almost synonymous with Hip-Hop; meaning RAP IS SOMETHING YOU DO, HIP-HOP IS SOMETHING YOU LIVE but they were married! Now the word rap is something with a slight negative connotation and rap is reserved for the less talented gimmicky “rappers” while lyricist is the word of choice for our
DRAGONS! Yo! MTV Raps and Rap City contained Rap in the title but do not be confused to think it wasn’t HIP-HOP. Now we have shows like Hip-Hop Hits, Hip-Hop this, Hip-Hop that...blah, blah, blah but without a sprinkle of authenticity within the programming. Instead of fully eliminating that bullshit, let’s demand some Yin and Yang (or BALANCE--see definition above)! We need balance; let them keep pushing that foolery but we don’t and shouldn’t cater to that BULLSHIT! If it’s bullshit, then it’s bullshit! We need to stop pussyfooting around, especially in album reviews, coming up with soft descriptions like, “Production is nice” or “lyrics are average but...” FUCK THAT! Garbage is garbage! You buy it, you’re stuck with it but don’t pass it off as Hip-Hop! This is the only and real problem. Everything isn’t Hip-Hop just because someone decides to rhyme their words. It’s a crying shame when the Justin Bieber’s Otis freestyle was better than a lot of so-called “hip hop” artist out there or that the Gym Class Heroes are more Hip-Hop than Drake and Big Sean (and let’s be clear, I fucks with Gym Class Heroes). The point is...well KRS-One can better make my point, “So since y’all confused on what Hip-Hop is, y’all confusing it with what pop is” ~KRS-One, 2011, “Who Is It” from the album Royalty Check
There are many avenues where people of like minds can parlay, politic and brainstorm but I am going to focus on one:
Twitter. I reach out to many people about this grassroots movement but my approach may be off so I'm humbling myself and asking; No, pleading for assistance and support. There are no tricks, no traps, no gotchas; this is isn't trick to swindle loot or property. All I'm asking is if you find yourself complaining about the lack of authentic Hip-Hop in the mainstream then join me to make a difference! This Blog was created to establish a forum for that real shit! Let’s join forces and take back what is ours. We can make OUR culture relevant again! All my peoples that is on Twitter reading this, let’s start using the hashtag #OccMS! Let’s start putting this BULLSHIT on notice; we’re watching and listening and we’re not impressed or moved! And when you are asked what does #OccMS means, direct them to my blog for the entire meaning and definition, “Thank you in advance.” Everything revolution starts from some sort of grass-roots movement (see definition above), so the time is now! I don’t know what the future holds but I do know if we don’t try then don’t complain... I'm putting my cards on the table. I don't have the big or little joker but don't get it twisted; I'm MAKING MY BOOKS! All I am asking for is support in helping me re-educate and help preserve the the culture and OUR art form.
This blog post is dedicated to the EMCEE (my post before this was dedicated to the DJ) so I really want to show my love to my Top 5 MCs (if you are an MC then you are not excluded; I chose writer’s discretion and listed only five but do not think I don’t have a list and this is for you tambien...SALUTE!): R.I.P. The Notorious One-Biggie (the Greatest), Black Thought (a true Philly representer! Salute Family), Jean Grae (a lyrical beast! mi la esposa [in my bizzaro universe] but seriously a true dear friend...Love you homie), KRS-One (The Teacher! Nuff Said, Salute) and Pharoahe Monch (a lyrical beast and severely underrated [like everyone on this list minus Biggie]).
Now let me help some of y’all haters out before you get started; there will be some that will call me a dick-rider and/or etc...well let’s be clear. In my previous blogs I wrote “Hip-Hop saved my life.” I didn’t make that up. I owe Hip-Hop my life as it is now; no regrets, no do-overs! I’m doing this and my part, with others, that is trying to preserve our culture. Our culture of Hip-Hop, to date, is less than 40 years old...we have to do better! So if the best you can come up with is “dick rider” because I’m genuine in my actions with the courage to put it on paper for the public, then as Redman stated, “I’ll be DAT!” And frankly, I don’t give a FUCK! So now that the slander is out the way...
Attached below is another mixtape I made (I’ve been practicing). Now you may be asking, “why are you dropping mixtapes if you are not inspiring to be a DJ?” Well, 1) this is only my second, 2) I'm an authentic B-Boy who loves Hip-Hop to the fullest, 3) as told to me by DJs I respect and admire, I'm a DJ at heart; so there's your answer. So often I hear the statement, “I don’t listen to rap because there isn’t any good music anymore.” Well I’m here to prove that very soft statement WRONG! In addition to words, I wanted to drop some
GOOD music that's relevant to this conversation and as always I pay homage to the DJ. It’s only right seeing how a DJ is the FATHER of our culture (Kool Herc, we love you). I wanted to present music on a straight novice level to the massive because for those that aren’t familiar to real Hip-Hop, authentic DJs can be intimidating because they literally make music with their hands so I figured if I can show them “folks” that there is good music out there with out catering and selling all the way out...I digged in my own crates to give the B-Boys, B-Girls, and the curious a mix they can rock to without feeling slimey LMAO! I could have hit you with mad freestyles and that grimey, grizzly, fork-tongue, slap your pops & moms, heavy shit but I’m not trying to chase anybody away so I chose Dragon Fire that is more radio oriented but HELL FIREBALLS none-the-less...ENJOY!
*DISCLAIMER* I AM NOT RESPONSIBLE FOR 100% OF THE SCRATCHING IN THIS MIXTAPE. THIS MEANS I DID NOT SCRATCH A RECORD! I AM RESPONSIBLE FOR THE ARRANGEMENT, MAJORITY OF THE BLENDS, BACKSPINS, BREAKS, AND JUGGLING! ANY SCRATCHING OR BLENDING THAT SOUNDS PROFESSIONAL WAS ALREADY IN THE RECORD ITSELF! THE MAJORITY (95%-98%) OF THE SCRATCHING WAS PERFORMED BY DJ JAZZY JEFF; ALL OTHERS WERE PERFORMED BY THE RESPECTIVE DJ FROM THE RECORD.
So big up and shout out to: The Magnificent DJ Jazzy Jeff (my Philly brethren & a true inspiration), Jam Master DJ Scratch (you've been mentoring me & probably don't know it but thank you a million! Salute), the Legendary DJ Kid Capri (you are that DUDE! Salute), the Iconic DJ Pete Rock (holding it down for us Chocolate brothas...Salute Fam), DJ Premier (Primo...Salute!), DJ SNS (family how you!), DJ Tony Toca (Tony Touch for those still at home trying to update their scorers sheet), DJ Doo Wop (Mr. Uptown/BX, thank you sincerely for the 50 MCs mixtape! I still rock it on cassette), DJ Ron G (Mr. Polo Grounds), DJ Queen of Spades (my secret crush LOL, wanted to show you love too) and other DJs that have more than the letters "D & J" in their moniker and that consistently & regularly shows us what a DJ is...SALUTE and PEACE!
RAP IS SOMETHING YOU DO, HIP-HOP IS SOMETHING YOU LIVE!
...from the immortal words of Jean Grae, “SCRABBLEBEOTCH”
Salute
Philly aka @Philly2AZ aka Mr. Who is That aka Mr. Pause Tape Prince
UNO
HIP-HOP NEVER STOPS! (Click link below to hear the mixtape and rock out! Salute)
MC Tribute_Dragon Fire, Fireballs, Hell Fire
