I didn't even want to touch part two of Oprah's Town Hall, but it was such a mess that I gotta address a few things.
Where do I even begin ...
I guess I'll start with Russell Simmons.
I lost a lot of respect for Simmons who repeatedly referred to rappers as "poets."
Tell me what's poetic about this:
Gotta handful of stacks, better grab an umbrella
I make it rain, I make it rain, I make it rain on them h*es.
Fat Joe ft. Lil' Wayne - Make It Rain
Simmons calling rappers "poets" is laughable.
True hip-hop artists are poets.
Rappers are not poets.
There needs to be a clear definition of what hip-hop is and what rap is.
If we leave this fight to the folks who can't tell you the difference between Common and 50 Cent, then true fans of hip-hop are in trouble.
One of the young ladies at
The other argument was, "What about the parents?"
Yes, you can put the blame on the parents, but let's be real - - if the parents haven't stepped up the plate by now, will they ever?
Unfortunately a lot of our youth don't come from the best households and finding one good parent, let alone two, is hard to come by.
And how about this Kevin Liles vs. Stanley Crouch showdown.
You see why we can't get anything done!
Crouch indirectly called Liles a "clown" because of the industry he has associated himself with since his days as a Def Jam intern.
They were both acting like clowns in my opinion.
The point of these last two days was to have an open dialog - - not get into name calling match.
Comments: (241)
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By: shadez on 4/18/2007 5:49PM
Just look for her next show "Town Hall Meeting" when she discusses the affect Guns N Roses music has on the youth today. I'm sure since she dedicated a full eight minutes to the females basketball team at Rutgers which lead to this two day forum (assault) on hip hop music, I'm sure she would appreciate bringing to her viewers the affect Guns N Roses music played in the mind of the killer at V.T. Highly doubtful since Guns N Roses are not black performers. Just a thought!
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By: Dorian Tvo on 4/18/2007 4:42PM
JUST ANOTHER EXAMPLE OF HOW BLACK FOLK (S) HURT THEMSELVES. IN TERMS OF WHAT RUSSELL SIMMONS FROM MY PERSPECTIVE IS SAYING ARTIST, RAPPERS, HIP HOPPERS, ETC.. DEFINE WHARE THEY COME FROM AND HOW THEY FEEL INSIDE OF THEMSELVES.ALL HUMANKIND ARE RESPONSIABLE FOR THEIR OWN INDIVIDUAL CHOICES... OPRAH CONTINUES TO DO GREAT WORK.. HOWEVER OPRAH HAS I AM SURE HER PICK AND CHOOSES, ESPECIALLY IN TERMS OF WHO APPEARS ON HER SHOW. WHERE IS THE WORLD WAS STANLEY CROUCH COMING FROM; WHEN HE TALKED ABOUT THE KUKLUX KLAN? NOW ARE WE TO BELIEVE THAT THERE IS SUCH A THING AS UPPER KKK AND LOWER KKK? GIVE ME A BREAK!! KKK IS TRASH PERIOD...HOW DOES STANDLY CROUCH DISQUISH THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN UPPER AND LOWER KUKLUX KLAN? IT APPEARS THAT STANDLY CROUCH FORGOT WHERE HE CAME FROM...FORGIVE ME BUT NOT ONLY DID STANDLY CROUCH USE THE TERM CLOWN HE APPEARS TO HAVE PRESENTED HIS SELF AS A CLOWN!!! I HAVE GREAT RESPECT FOR KEVIN LILES ADDRESSING THAT COMMENT DIRECTLY BACK AT STANDLY CROUCH.. AS DIPLOMATIC AS HE COULD...BLACKS CERTAINLY HAVE A LONG WAY TO GO.. IT APPEARS THAT MANY BLACKS STILL HAVE A SERIOUS PROBLEM EMBRACING THEMSELVES..IT ALSO APPEARS THAT THE WHITE RACE CONTINUES TO EXPLOIT THE BLACK RACE,MUSIC, AND ANY THING ELSE SOME CAN GET THERE HANDS ON. WHAT WAS COLOR PURPLE ABOUT? WHAT ABOUT JUSTIN TIMBERLAKE? LOOK WHAT JUSTIN TIMBERLAKE DID, CLAIMING THE JACKSON AS MENTORS, THEN DISRESPECTING JANET JACKSON AS HE DID... YES, MANY BLACK WOMEN NEED TO TAKE A SECOND LOOK AT HOW THEY PRESENT THEMSELVES IN VIDEOS.. IN THE MEAN TIME IF WE DON'T LIKE WHAT WE SEE ON TELVISION ETC, ETC, THEN THE CHOICE REMAINS CHANGE THE CHANNEL OR TURN IT OFF. DON'T BLAME HIP HOP MUSIC, THE RAPPERS, ETC. NOW, THE QUESTION REMAINS WHAT OR WHO IS AN ARTIS, POET, SO ON AND SO FORTH... GIVE ME A BREAK!!!
RESPECTFULLY
DDT
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By: Dorian Tvo on 4/18/2007 5:10PM
RAPPERS ARE POETS..IT IS INDIVIDUAL EXPERIENCES AS WELL AS INDIVIDUAL CHOICES.. ALL HUMAN BEINGS MISS THE MARK OF PERFECTION AT BIRTH..WHY IS THE DISPARITY HIGHEST AMONGST BLACK FOLKS? TO THE SISTERS AT "SPELLMAN" I APPLAUD YOU; HOWEVER, RESPECT YOUR SELF ALL THE TIME, LIKE SOME ONE SAID ON OPRAH PANNAL SOME OF YA SISTER IS OUT THERE LISTENING TO RAP, HIP HOP, BE BOP AND THE LIKE.. CHECK YOUR SELF AND MOVE ON TO YOUR INDIVIDUAL CHOICES.. PEACH BE UPON ALL HUMANKIND. I TAKE IT ALL TO THE CREATER OF ALL HUMANKIND.
PEACE....................
ddt
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By: Keith on 4/18/2007 11:41PM
There was a time when most of the material put out by artist like Rudy Ray Moore, Skillet and Leroy,and Redd Foxx were banned from all public media outlets.Lets face it, the material was funny but it also was indecent.If you wanted to listen to them, you went and purchased their records and listened to them in the privacy of your home or you played them real low on your 8-Tracks in your car, because you didn't want to offend anyone. I say that to say this. In this day and age of free speech, I reserve my right to change the channel, or not purchase what I consider to be offensive and indecent. Everyone has the right to listen to or view whatever they want, but do we have the right to blare it out in the public and force it on others?
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By: I Press on 4/19/2007 6:49AM
Sad sad sad, how we justify Oprah's concern by placing how much time she spends on a particular topic. Shadez, for your information, the shows that were actually scheduled to air, were rescheduled. As far as the eight minutes 'dedicated' the Rutgers Womens Basketball team... have you seen them? They have been everywhere, she was fortunate to be able to get those eight minutes, because thet had another appearance to prepare for. So, the next time you make a comment against someone, make sure you have ALL the facts.
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By: Cecil Jones on 4/19/2007 6:49AM
Where do we go from here? How about getting our people to tell the truth and let the real players share the story? I combined Hip Hop and politics during the 2004 election cycle. I wrote poems about Pat Tillman, Bush falling, I told the whole truth about Bill Clinton, and I contacted the Young Democrats and Oprah's leadership forum to share a political message. Our colleges are going crazy because they lack leadership. Imus, Rosie and Rutgers are all political events that point directly back to me. Tell the truth and I'll shock the world. I'm pitching a book and the world is trying to change the rules. We don't know what we can say anymore. I'm "The Democratic Karl Rove" and "The Black Rush".
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By: SisterMalcolm on 4/19/2007 11:47AM
POOR MARCUS. He is so BIASED in so MANY DIRECTIONS, it's pathetic.
First, he see's no harm in Rap music and no particular offense in a powerful White icon from a powerful White medium telling the world what he thinks of some Black women.
Then he agree's with another Uncle Tom (Whitlock) that the problem is with Jackson and Sharpton for stepping up to the plate and saying our women deserve dignity and I'm not going to take it.
You see, Marcus, Whitlock and Imus are all part of the media. And they MUST OBEY their media masters.
Now Marcus tells us that Black people, ESPECIALLY YOUNG BLACK people cannot be poets.
Isn't this sad? A poet must be some old dead and stuffy European dude, or some stale and priviledge White guy from some Ivy League background.
FOR YOU MARCUS, YOU POOR, POOR THING:
POET:
a person who composes poetry.
Then
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By: SisterMalcolm on 4/19/2007 11:47AM
POET:
a person who composes poetry.
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By: Unclethomas on 4/19/2007 11:47AM
Why can't a Black person who writes poetry be considered a poet? Is it a race or class thing?
Writing poetry is the definition of a poet.
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