Replies

[Allmenjoi8]

There have only been three interviews in my life that I was excited to see this is number 4. Rev. Dr. Michael Eric Dyson is going to interview Floyd Mayweather on HBO in April. Dr. Dyson former Professor of Harvard and Univ. Penn and is at Georgetown Univ. will do a great job. He is from Detroit and this man does not ask easy questions. His debate with Dr. Cornell West was OUTSTANDING. I wonder what kind of questions will be asked. I hope Floyd take this opportunity to really show Floyd Mayweather and not the personality. I am sure Dr. Dyson will ask him about his jail sentence, relationship with his dad and other hot topics. Who ever thought of this gets two thumbs way up.

[Allmenjoi8]

Nope! Im pretty sure you didn't bypass any asswhoopins, which were coupled with those endless ugly jokes that you endured day in and day out.

Never been in a fight and no ugly jokes. Keep fishing little man. Next thing you know you will be doing mama jokes.

i think u guys were married in a past life or something. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/laugh.gif)

i can see both sides of the argument.

more ppl in prominent positions need to speak out against the injustices of the day. it's what made ali, paul robeson, jim brown and a very few others the champions they were. they always did it at the cost of being outcast or blackballed. ali gave up 3 yrs of his career for something he believed in. that will never be topped by todays athletes who expect the world and give very little. todays athletes are rewarded for potential!!! not accomplishments. it's really a sad state.

as far as tupac...i don't see him as the great person/martyr everyone makes him out to be. i see him as a tragedy. a person with sooo much potential and he pissed it all away trying to be accepted by the ppl. he wasn't a thug. he wanted to be. he had a voice and didn't always use it the right way. he left us some gems....but the overwhelming majority of his shit contradicts the good.

i guess a lot can be said for speaking out....or not giving a shit what the masses think. sometimes barriers are made to be broken. the media is going to spin things the way they see fit. i look back on a guy like jack johnson who was waaay ahead of his time. he was brash...he didn't give a shit what ppl thought....and as a result, riots occured and ppl were killed because of what he accomplished. i can't blame that on jack johnson. he was who he was....and the racists that committed the crimes they did as the result of his actions were what they were....pieces of shit.

history is riddled with ppl that some view as hero's and there will always be critics to paint a different picture. i say learn to decipher the double speak and don't believe everything u read or hear.

If I were to take that plunge it would definitely be with someone I could be eye level with and 5'6 ain't cutting it. Plus I dig people who actually can argue without resolving to middle school behavior. It is sad when a grown man (not in height just age) has to act like a 12 year old child. Married people do not like act like this, marriage is a union of happiness....

Whoa whoa whoa. 1st of all, Jay Z is the best rapper alive lol 2nd of all, PART of the reason there is a disconnect with today's youth and past generations is because todays youth doesnt make a concerned effort to know their history. The other part is because the elder generation makes comments like this. Jay Z is extremely philanthropic and socially vocal about pressing matters. Let's be frank. While I don't knock people's attempts to bring awareness, honestly, most people are doing it because it's "trending". There have been @ least 4 similar incidents since the the atrocity that is the Trayvon Martin case and they aren't nearly as publicized. I say that to say this:

Just because a guy doesn't rap about one popular issue doesn't mean he isn't socially conscious. He and Kanye were both very vocal and very altruistic when it came to Ktrina. Jay Z was also one of the only artists to rap about the horrific water conditions in Africa. In fact, MTV did a documentary on his efforts to help quell it. He's probably one of the only rappers to work alongside Kofi Annan. Furthermore, MTV covered a gala he had for his scholarship fund. My best friend actually worked on the segment. At least 3 of his concert's proceeds have completely gone to 9/11. He's a big time contributor to Red Cross, B&G Club and Public Schools in NYC. Furthermore, he and U2 had a concert that raised money for Haiti after the earthquake. Furthermore, his lyrics have always included social issues including the hypocrisy of Bush's presidential tenure, police corruption amongst the NYPD, FEMA's futile efforts during Katrina, Sean Bell (for whom he's started a trust fund for his children), Danroy Henry's murder, convinced black ppl to boycott Crystal champagne because of the racist remarks they made, Obama's campaign etc.

While the blame rightfully is put on children for choosing to glorify ignorance and parents for not being resounding role models, some of the blame needs to be put on irresposible media. When Jay Z and Warren Buffet teamed up with Boys and Girls Club to teach financial responsibility, it went completely unnoticed. At some point, we need to hold the media accoutable for ommitting positive news and distorting the facts.

As Floyd said one time, the media doesn't care to show when he does good. They like to see him cursing and talking shit and being flashy. Should black celebs resist the urgeand become more consistent role models? Yes. But until we start holding the media accountable for not showing that side of them, it will all go for naught.

Jay Z is lame. And he is only on top because 2 rappers are no longer breathing. There is nothing about Jay Z that is remotely interesting. He is a great wordsmith I will give you that but his last great album was his first well okay I will give you the Black Album but again Reasonable Doubt is my top 15. Jay Z is an example of my disgust for the music industry as a whole. Immortal Technique who is one of my favorite artist spits real shit. Dead Prez is another group that really was trying to educate the masses. Jay Z has the biggest platform, why not use the one Platform that people will listen to you to get shit across? If he can get half of America to throw up that demonic rock symbol then he can get people to listen to him talk about shit in music, but he doesn't. Now I will say there have been a few songs that he touches on certain situations but just in passing. I remember in the 90s when all of the popular rappers from the Fresh Coast and East Coast came to do a song called Self Destruction. That is what is lacking. The problem with the youth is they feel as if the only thing that matters is them and the music plays into it.

As far as Jay Z goes with his philanthropy, I feel where you are coming from but the story that I have heard about him I would have to look at the situation as a whole but hell no one is clean. The media does not do positive stories especially in America. If you go to places like Canada, Iceland, Finland, Germany, Japan, China, and Jamaica or any of the Islands the news is totally different. They do not do segments on murder and if they do they do not make it into a major story. In America crime pays. Do you know what the highest ratings were for a news channel? The OJ Simpson trail. For some reason negativity sales in this country. So what will make news Jay Z spitting on a fan (not saying that ever happen) or Jay Z opening up a Boys and Girls club? The news is also structured on racism, they feed into those fears. Yesterday when a man killed 7 people in Oakland, CA they did not reveal his ethnicity, the guy was Korean. If this guy would had been black, that would be the first lines you would read in newspaper. A scary black man will always outside a crazy white cat.

I would challenge any society and especially people of color to push back on the images that the news and media displays of them. If the only thing America knows about people of color is crime, entertainment and pure fuckery than that is what you will expect from that group.
As African Americans we hold a responsibility in all of this. Yes it is the media but also it is us because we feed into the images. We are letting outside entities dictate who and what we are. There was this book called Post Traumatic Slave Disorder. An amazing book that breaks down certain behaviors that we displayed when we were slaves. We are forgetting our main roots which is why nothing we do or try to do sustains.

The Floyd comment, he is right but should he be something that he really isn't or should he be who he is? The Price of the Ticket. What are people willing to do to make it or to be relevant? Floyd's career depends on selling tickets and PPVs. So the nice guy act didn't work so he turned into a fuckin prick (which I love) now would I be a fan of Floyd's if he wasn't a prick, yes. Kobe Bryant who is a prick has not changed his image and I love him for that. He did not turn into a Shaq or Charles Barkley etc. He is who he is. Has he taken a hit for it yes! Floyd is in a position where he wants to be loved an respected and he wants to be liked but the bad guy image that got him where he is will not allow it. So again "To thy own self be true?" or "I am willing to do what I have to do."

[daprofessor]

Never been in a fight and no ugly jokes. Keep fishing little man. Next thing you know you will be doing mama jokes.



If I were to take that plunge it would definitely be with someone I could be eye level with and 5'6 ain't cutting it. Plus I dig people who actually can argue without resolving to middle school behavior. It is sad when a grown man (not in height just age) has to act like a 12 year old child. Married people do not like act like this, marriage is a union of happiness....



Jay Z is lame. And he is only on top because 2 rappers are no longer breathing. There is nothing about Jay Z that is remotely interesting. He is a great wordsmith I will give you that but his last great album was his first well okay I will give you the Black Album but again Reasonable Doubt is my top 15. Jay Z is an example of my disgust for the music industry as a whole. Immortal Technique who is one of my favorite artist spits real shit. Dead Prez is another group that really was trying to educate the masses. Jay Z has the biggest platform, why not use the one Platform that people will listen to you to get shit across? If he can get half of America to throw up that demonic rock symbol then he can get people to listen to him talk about shit in music, but he doesn't. Now I will say there have been a few songs that he touches on certain situations but just in passing. I remember in the 90s when all of the popular rappers from the Fresh Coast and East Coast came to do a song called Self Destruction. That is what is lacking. The problem with the youth is they feel as if the only thing that matters is them and the music plays into it.

As far as Jay Z goes with his philanthropy, I feel where you are coming from but the story that I have heard about him I would have to look at the situation as a whole but hell no one is clean. The media does not do positive stories especially in America. If you go to places like Canada, Iceland, Finland, Germany, Japan, China, and Jamaica or any of the Islands the news is totally different. They do not do segments on murder and if they do they do not make it into a major story. In America crime pays. Do you know what the highest ratings were for a news channel? The OJ Simpson trail. For some reason negativity sales in this country. So what will make news Jay Z spitting on a fan (not saying that ever happen) or Jay Z opening up a Boys and Girls club? The news is also structured on racism, they feed into those fears. Yesterday when a man killed 7 people in Oakland, CA they did not reveal his ethnicity, the guy was Korean. If this guy would had been black, that would be the first lines you would read in newspaper. A scary black man will always outside a crazy white cat.

I would challenge any society and especially people of color to push back on the images that the news and media displays of them. If the only thing America knows about people of color is crime, entertainment and pure fuckery than that is what you will expect from that group.
As African Americans we hold a responsibility in all of this. Yes it is the media but also it is us because we feed into the images. We are letting outside entities dictate who and what we are. There was this book called Post Traumatic Slave Disorder. An amazing book that breaks down certain behaviors that we displayed when we were slaves. We are forgetting our main roots which is why nothing we do or try to do sustains.

The Floyd comment, he is right but should he be something that he really isn't or should he be who he is? The Price of the Ticket. What are people willing to do to make it or to be relevant? Floyd's career depends on selling tickets and PPVs. So the nice guy act didn't work so he turned into a fuckin prick (which I love) now would I be a fan of Floyd's if he wasn't a prick, yes. Kobe Bryant who is a prick has not changed his image and I love him for that. He did not turn into a Shaq or Charles Barkley etc. He is who he is. Has he taken a hit for it yes! Floyd is in a position where he wants to be loved an respected and he wants to be liked but the bad guy image that got him where he is will not allow it. So again "To thy own self be true?" or "I am willing to do what I have to do."

solid post.