Kanye West....WTF?!

Not to take anything away from Mr. West here... I mean he IS an amazing artist. His energy is high, releasing an album every year since 2004 and producing countless singles and albums for other artists since 2001; and his music is far from ordinary. He takes hip hop to another level and much like Jay-Z, Pharrell Williams (of N.E.R.D.) and Mos Def (my personal fave) he has raised the bar for urban music to a level that few can reach. Having said THAT....

...WTF, Kanye??

After his win at the MTV EMA's (European Music Awards) this past week , West was quoted saying, "I won nothing last year and I'd brought out Stronger. Then this year, just because I was there, I won best urban act. This was Lil Wayne's year." But the gush of appreciation didn't end there...he went on to say, "Britney Spears over Rihanna? Are you serious? I mean fucking Jared Leto? He's my boy but he shouldn't have won over some of those other artists."

Well, I'll admit that Jared Leto might be far from America's favorite list of artists and I'm DEFINITELY not a fan of the whole "blood bath" scenario at 30 Seconds to Mars' concerts; but they're concepts are one of a kind, the music is sincere and their videos are something to take note of, not to mention it's EUROPEAN music awards, and their taste is usually far different that that of the US. As far as Britney over Rihanna is concerned...I can't argue, that was an entirely unfounded choice and obviously a corporate decision given her embarrassingly wobbly (and by wobbly I mean the 'fat-jiggle') performance she gave at the VMA's last year. Kanye should be thankful he got an award and graciously accept. Shut up, count your millions and stop complaining about all the love your getting that you probably deserved last year; better late than never.

BUT....it doesn't stop there, folks.

West was also quoted as saying, ‘‘I realize that my place and position in history is that I will go down as the voice of this generation, of this decade, I will be the loudest voice... It’s me settling into that position of just really accepting that it’s one thing to say you want to do it and it’s another thing to really end up being like Michael Jordan.’’

So how does Kanye get this honor of being dubbed "the voice of this generation"? A Michael Jordan reference? Was their a 1/8 of a lifetime achievement award he received that I've somehow missed?? He undoubtedly is a large influence in hip hop music today, but lets not forget that the world does not revolve around hip hop music. He's not an actor, a painter, an activist, a diplomat or anything much more than an, albeit amazing, producer and lyricist. Although his music touches people of all preferences, it's still soundly considered Urban Hip Hop. Being "the voice" of a generation, at least in my humble opinion requires more than just that. I mean, he's really dumbing down the potential of this generation by naming himself the King.

With all of the musical influences of the past decade, Kanye has definitely ruled the commercial music scene for the last 4 years, but his place is hardly in same halls of The Beatles, Jimi Hendrix, Prince, Marvin Gaye, Bob Marley or Elvis Presley (pick your era)... I think he's still got some proving to do. And if he thinks his job is done after 4 or 5 short years of being a household name, his light will end up burning out quicker than he can imagine.

Sorry Kanye, but as far as being the voice of my generation....

you gotta speak up a little louder to speak for me.

Nas Says N*gger

I say speak for yourself.

There's no denying that Nas is a talented lyricist. His words are captivating, his voice is clear. His position in hip hop, regardless of the nay-sayers, is firmly in place. But his soon-to-be released album which currently bares no title....? (Update: My bad, his album as of 5/19 is entitled "Nas".) Not so much. The original title, for those of you living under rocks this year, was supposed to be "Nigger". He proudly announced this fact last October. But the reality of it is record sales will surely suffer if Target and Best Buy can't put his CD on their squeaky clean shelves, so it was recently stated that the title will be changed to something more the-man-friendly.

Humph....whatever Nas.

Lets get this straight, shall we? Nas was quoted as saying he wants to "..take the power out of the word nigger..." by repeating it over and over in his new album and calling the entire LP "Nigger". Or perhaps the reality is, that Nas is low on funds and wants to exploit the nigger-happy generation of today by selling them his latest rhymes wrapped up with a big nigger-bow to make them feel as though they've made some kind of statement by buying (literally) into his bull shit. As if this is some kind of activist movement, some kind of social uprising. Give me a break.

Nigger is and always will refer to ignorance. The use of it only points the finger at you. Stamping the word across your face doesn't make it less offensive, it just elevates it's platform to cause damage. There's already enough negative connotation associated with the word "Black", why add fuel to the fire? The word "Nigger" is alive today because our own people continue to braid it into music, movies and literature. No one is pounding fists in our faces, spraying water hoses at our bodies or releasing dogs in the streets. There are no segregation laws, no provincial exploitations of our human rights. We have just as many rights and opportunities today (and for the last 40 years) as the next Jim, John or Suzie. So what "statement" could Nas possibly think he would be making with a CD entitled "Nigger"? Aside from the power of suggestion, the most commonly used form of advertisement today.

I'm puzzled.

Could it be, and I tentatively speculate, that Nas simply wants to get some attention. This is his black-boy version of a scandalous headline to be splashed across the tabloid pages so that by any means necessary Nas is dubbed a household name? Is this his screaming tantrum? Because if it is, I truly wish that he would kindly speak for himself. As a black woman who has lived on both sides of the tracks I most definitely am not where I came from. I am not who I came from and I'm FAR from being a nigger any day of the week. I don't hold the ghetto as a badge of honer, I hold it as an obstacle that was over come by my family. I don't think the stories of my grandparents and my friends grandparents about how they marched in the streets begging to be recognized as equal citizens are mere humorous antidotes. I'm proud enough to boycott an album I otherwise would have rushed out to buy (not burn). I'm proud enough to feel ashamed of yet another black man who has risen above the odds against him, and found a stage to voice his opinions. And with the spot light blazing on his face and the world as his audience; hushed quiet and waiting in anticipation for what this representation of Black society has to say....He clears his throat, steps before the waiting mic and clearly states:

"I know I'm a black man, but I prefer Nigger. Cop my joint."

Thanks, Nas...good lookin out.