Hillary’s Fight to the Finish

Yesterday in West Virginia, Senator Hillary Clinton vowed to stay in the presidential race even after her big loss in North Carolina and slim victory in Indiana. Democratic Party insiders, particularly those who are loyal and supporting the junior Senator of New York are facing pressure to switch their support towards Obama. Like I said before in my previous blogs, she has every right to stay in the race, however, Democrats fear that their might be a civil war within the Party because of the growing feud between the Obama surrogates and the Clinton surrogates. It has become clear who the presumptive Democratic nominee is going to be but Hillary isn’t giving up her hopes yet.

She should continue her campaign and raise enough money to pay off her debts. She in fact did loan her campaign another $6.4 million coming straight from her own pocket just recently. Now that Obama expanded his lead in the popular vote, the ongoing argument that Hillary makes that she has more popular votes including Florida and Michigan is no longer in check even if she were to count them now. The only realistic way she can receive this nomination is if super delegates decide to overturn the will of the popular vote and the pledged delegate count, which could ultimately turn off a lot Obama’s base supporters. In which case Rush Limbaugh’s “Operation Chaos” will have succeeded. My personal advice to Hillary, come back in 2012.

We Just Keep Rolling…

When was the last time you heard any of the candidates talk about issues in a realistic fashion… i.e. not offering a gas tax holiday, but breaking down the long term solutions? Alright, harder question then: when was the last time you heard the press ASK a question about the hard issues?

Thought so.

How would YOU have liked the primary season to go, new coverage-wise?

WTNW: The Bathroom is the New Office

From our sister blog, What’s the New What!

I’m not ashamed to admit it; I’ve held several conversations on the can that directly pertain to business. I’ve also looked over contracts and planned events, all while relieving myself. In the sitcom Seinfeld, when the character George read a book in the bathroom, it was “flagged” and people didn’t want to go near it. I wouldn’t give a crap (no pun intended) if someone read a book in the bathroom.

-King Anyi

Read the whole piece!

We care too. Rappers Influence on the Election.

Artists from Will.i.am to Dem Franchize Boys have put out videos in response to the upcoming presidential elections. In the past we have seen top of the totem poll hip-hip icons like P.Diddy and Russel Simmons fight for the vote, and they are just as vocal this election. The surprise is how many other young, and unsuspected artists have an opinion on the issue and are making it known. Now more than ever, while history is in the making, we need these artists to show they care and stress how important the voting process is to the many young people who look up to them.

I have seen hip-hop artists for Hilary and Obama, but I would say the hip-hop community as a whole definitely favors Obama. His ability to speak, and speak so well on issues that effect us everyday is why I, a rap artist, and many other rap artists have been able to relate to his campaign. Even on TV his presence is felt, and it is just so…presidential. He is the only candidate I have seen in my 20 years of life that can say that they are a president for the people and I actually believe them.

Let me break down why the hip-hop community could feel Obama based on his past alone. He was raised by a single mother, like us. He smoked weed in high school, like us. (Not to mention he was honest about his drug use, unlike some of the other ex-presidents). He played basketball, like us. And on top of all the similarities he might have to the average young man on the mic, he was able to raise above all the racism, stereotypes, etc. and is this close (I’m holding my thumb and index together) to becoming the President of the United States of America. Now that’s some shit right there.

Just as we are looking for a change in our deteriorating communities, about two hours ago I attended the funeral of a friend who lost his life prematurely to the gun, he speaks on these subjects. Just as the state of mainstream hip-hop has drifted far from the island where it once started, and for the worse in my opinion, he graces the cover of Vibe and speaks directly to its followers. We have a man running for president who preaches change and has gotten me to actually watch CNN, and trust me, I don’t watch CNN. To convince the young people and the hip-hop artists in particular, to get excited about our country and ready to vote is a job only Obama and this election could have done.

Most profound, relevant, speech I have heard.

Here We Go Again

When, I ask you, when does the hurting stop?

Its another Primary Tuesday… um, yay? We’ve already got accusations of vote tampering in Indiana by Rush Limbaugh’s Dittoheads’s, polling that runs every which way but sensible, Team Clinton trying to move the goalposts, and a looming threat of the so-called “nuclear option”.

Remember just four months ago when Democrats where ecstatic to have two incredibly strong candidates running for President? Now it looks like a Culture War on the left.

Qui bono?

The Roach Report: Waitin’ On Weezy

[By Roach Gigz]

The syrup sippin, dread rockin, 25-year-old is without question the hottest man in rap right now. Just this year he has graced the cover of The Source, XXL (three different covers), and Vibe. His pictures clutter almost every girls MySpace page I go to, and his songs have been playing on every burnt CD just about anywhere for the past year and a half. This is pretty impressive for a young man who has not even put out an album since the Carter 2 over two years ago.

The self-proclaimed best rapper alive is in a zone, on his own island with a studio and all the drugs he needs. He makes song after song after song, and if a whole CD gets leaked, oh well, he has hundreds more songs to choose from. And the fans aren’t complaining about the free music, that’s for sure. Guest appearances keep his face on TV and his pockets plump. Not to mention the constant live shows keep his name ringing all over the country, especially when he gets arrested for ecstasy, coke, and weed on the way to the venue.

And even though last year, he was also on the cover of Vibe, with a list of his 77 best songs of 2007 we have all been waiting on the official Carter 3 release. The date has been pushed back more times than I can count, and fans can only speculate the reasons. But finally, it looks like the world won’t have to wait too much longer. He released his first single, “Lollipop” ft. Static Majors and it was an instant hit. The catchy song which is more singing than rapping can be heard bumping out of every car that passes. The radio is playing it more than Soulja Boy’s “Crank Dat” was, and the video is number one on 106 and Park. The official release date for the album was May 13^th, but recently got moved back to June 9^th. After all this, the album better live up to the hype. I think it will, after all, it is Lil’ Wayne.

May 1st: Protest Day

It has been going on for the last couple of years on the first day of May in cities across the nation. Thousands of immigrants and activists gather together and protests hoping that the government would enact immigration reform. This should be a better year for these activists to let their voices be heard since it is Election year, they can call on the presidential hopefuls to pursue a reform benefiting their rights to be treated equal as a citizen would.

I don’t blame these people one bit for doing this, after all, they do deserve the right to reside in the United States regardless whether they’re a natural born or not. I believe that immigrants came to live here for one purpose, and that is to pursue the American dream. Unfortunately, a number of these people get discriminated against, whether they don’t speak fluent English or just simply as some would put “an undocumented worker.” Hopefully, the government would come up with some sort of reform that will grant immigrants to their stay in the U.S.

Today is May Day

For the past two years the first of May has seen major mobilizations in the immigrants right’s movement. Today is no exception. From Youth Radio LA’s blog:

People are planning to mobilize in Los Angeles in recognition of workers’ rights, immigrants’ rights, and in solidarity with those who make global consumer culture and economy churn everyday. Los Angeles May Day has taken on the character of justice and support for Immigrant’s rights.

Youth Radio LA will be covering the mobilizations in Los Angeles all day, with fresh pictures and audio posting direct to their blog. Follow the coverage live.

In addition Youth Radio’s webradio will be broadcasting live from 4-5 PM PDT on the topic on our live stream.

John Cho Interview DECONSTRUCTED

On a recent Saturday morning, instead of sleeping in and then watching re-runs of That’s So Raven on ABC Family– because I don’t even get Disney Channel–while eating mini-wheats in my pajamas, I got to interview the star John Cho. Cho plays the uptight Harold in Harold and Kumar Go to White Castle. We went to interview him about his new project, Harold and Kumar Escape from Guantanamo Bay. Yeah, you heard me right. GUANTANAMO BAY.

When my partner in crime Ankitha and I got off BART, we went upstairs to the streets of San Francisco, and immediately whipped out our map to figure out where we were going. What with that and our huge bag– full of equipment– I’m pretty sure we had tourist status ACHIEVED. Finally, when we found the hotel we were to talk to John Cho in, we circled the building a few times, checked out the premises, and then entered as the doorman welcomed us.

“I feel WAY underdressed” Ankitha said. We looked around at the fancy chairs and the fancy lobby and the even fancier concierge (mostly because of the French name) and then looked down at our jeans and sweatshirts. Yikes. Just us existing was a faux pas in that place. However, we found comfort in one other young guy standing around awkwardly, also with a cumbersome bag and caj clothing. But when we could stand the awkwardness no longer, I finally ventured deep into the depths of my bag (that contained everything from a flash recorder to a tube of chapstick) and pulled out the printed email telling us where to go and what to do and all that fun stuff. We called the public relations person and in a cool, collected voice she assured us she would come down to the lobby to round us up. When a young twenty-something with straight blond hair dressed in Urban Outfitters garb traipsed out of the elevator, blackberry in hand, we knew we were in the right place. She also picked up the other young cas guy, who turned out to be from Rotten Tomatoes (SWEET!) and we entered a long ride in the elevator up. When we got out, we entered a room with what I assumed to be some other PR peeps, drinking coffee outta tea cups and scrolling through texts on their sidekicks.

“I mean, read this text, if she were telling the truth, she would definitely NOT provide this many details.”

“Yeah I mean come on, she must have been high or drunk or something from partying all night.”

Eek. Ankitha and I stared at the ground and waited for the PR rep, who we had temporarily adopted as our mommy, to take care of us and tell us where to go. Finally after a few minutes of standing around listening to PR people gossip and ignore us, she took us into a mini-conference room with a city view, an entire corner of the room dedicated to food, and two large round tables. A few people were already sitting at one, and as the PR lady and the Rotten Tomatoes kid joined them, Ankitha and I opted for the more anti-social one, and sat down at the empty table.

“Can I offer you guys anything to eat? Some fresh fruit, coffee, croissants” asked the PR lady.

“Ummm….do you have some water?” Ankitha inquired.

“Oh sure!” She went to the corner of the room and came back soon with a cylindrical glass bottle filled with a clear liquid. She handed it to Ankitha and walked away.

Ankitha read from the bottle.

“V-O-S-S….Voss? ‘Artisan water from Norway’ Okey doke…I mean what the heck is artisan water?” We pondered the curious bottle for a while, then finally Ankitha took a sip. I awaited a response.

“It’s just….water….”

“Oh…” Somehow I expected something magical to happen. I mean, it seemed like she should have sprouted a Prada bag and a pair of sunglasses on the spot, but I guess it was just plan water after all.

We listened to the others talk as we played Hangman in Ankitha’s notebook and drank artisan water.

“It’s an animal” she said. “But I can’t remember how to spell it.”

“Is it giraffe? Because that would just be sad if you couldn’t spell giraffe.” We both started laughing. After recovering from some evil stares at our loud and obnoxious laughs (mostly mine-it isn’t the graceful chuckle you’d assume), the PR lady got up.

“John is ready for you, girls.”

We got up and made our way to the “suite” as the PR rep had told us. When we entered the huge living-room type area, we saw a gaping window with an amazing view of the city, a coffee table with magazines, and some fancy couches. Oh yeah, and John Cho.

Holy crap. It’s Harold! We introduced ourselves and I asked him what it was like to ride a cheetah, and then we sat down and started dropping our questions LIKE WHAT.

That’s when this comes in:

LISTEN TO THE INTERVIEW [8:25, MP3 format]

READ THE ORIGINAL ARTICLE

Roach Report: Deodorant Brands Are the New Record Labels

[By Roach Report]

The music industry is going through its own hurricane Katrina. The up and coming artists are on their roofs trying to get picked up, established artists are using their mediocre status to search for shelter with whomever will take them, and the super stars have already left and found a new home far from New Orleans. The major labels, aka Bush, who never really cared about their artists in the first place, are stuck in the past and can no longer do anything for them. As a result the select few established already rich superstars have moved on.

Jermaine Dupri and his Island Def Jam label, for example, have found plush refuge at Procter & Gamble’s Deodorants TAG brand and formed TAG Records. Dupri says “The new label is going to provide artists with the chance of a lifetime. New artists will receive ten times the typical marketing support.” I just hope that doesn’t come in exchange for artists randomly spraying themselves with TAG body spray in the middle of their videos. It is beneficial for TAG because their new deal will enable them to reach and urban market, which they previously couldn’t. The only problem I see is if they try to turn the artist’s whole career into a commercial.

And it’s not just deodorant companies taking the parent role away from the major labels like social workers “rescuing” a good artist who has been mistreated. Live Nation, a company that produces and promotes live events has suddenly turned record label as well. They recently signed Madonna and Jay-Z to $120 Mil and $150 Mil deals. Jay-Z is no longer the president of Def Jam but his new label will have a Tour Company telling him the can’s and cants regarding his new venture, Roc Nation. Live Nation claims to know that CD sales are low, and that is why these deals involve taking more money out of other aspects of an artist’s career. They say they will be getting their bread through extensive artist touring, endorsements, and recordings, marketing all the artists’ ventures as one package. As interesting or untraditional as this sounds, it looks like this is the direction we are headed. It happened years ago when music and movies started merging, and now I guess its time for Colgate Toothpaste to be the home of the next rap star.