At times when I watch episodes like this, it's hard for me to fathom that all of life's problems can be fixed in the matter of 30-60 minutes. But then again, every self-help guru ain't Iyanla Vanzant.
Vanzant has always been a person that I admired. Of course, she was placed into my consciousness to due Almighty Oprah, but there's something about her that makes a sista wanna just sit down with her and have a good soul cry. I think Cheryl was right, if Vanzant couldn't help them mend their 20+ year relationship, then who could?
So, what I hear is that Janet Jackson released her tenth studio album, Discipline, yesterday.
That's all fine and stuff, but I'm still stuck on old-school Miss Jackson. No disrespect to her, but I can't get with anything newer than Velvet Rope. Guess I'm just a JDJ purist.
Anyway, I thought I'd pay her some tribute today and post up my favorite Janet Jackson video. Mind you, it used to be "Love Will Never Do (Without You)", until a looooong time ago, I watched one of those BET Countdown 25 things and Alonzo Mourning (yes, him) said that this was HIS favorite. I saw it, and then it changed my life. THIS RIGHT HERE was dancing, and not only that, a dancer who respected the art form of perfect choreography.
Aight guys (and some ladies)... stop playing pocket pool, now. You're at work!
I am by no means a Jay-Z "sackryda", as y'all would call it, but I absolutely LOVE this joint. I listen to it everyday, and it's on my Top Jay-Z Cuts of All Time list. Whether you hate him or love him, the delivery and metaphors on this track are ridiculous-- not his BEST, but definitely noteworthy.
That being said, I was very happy to find out that this video had debuted.
Until I saw it.
Wow. That video is dark as hell. Jay does get a point for realizing that the naked chick video is getting old.
Did anyone catch Zoe Kravitz (Lenny's daughter) in the video?
Y'all peeped this ep last night, so y'all tell me... who do y'all think was the biggest Diva last night?
Hmm. Hard to point out a specific member of Day26, huh? Figured that.
Before I go heavy into the re-cap, I just have to say one thing. Usually, I hate P. Sh*tty's lil’ interruptions during the broadcast... BUT I LOVED HIS “BITCHASSNESS BULLETIN!â€! Mad props to Sean John for calling Que out on that one-- it was deserved.
So, at the top of the episode, Diddy reaches deep into his bag of tricks and pulls out all types of producers (read: lukewarm n*ggas who all think they're hot sh*t & proceed to perpetuate their delusional states of reality by wearing dark shades indoors) to work on DK, Day26 and Donnie's albums, such as Jim Beanz (yeah, this is the MAIN n*gga that needs to STOP IT), Mary Brown, Seven (who should be focusing on resurrecting the careers in people in his own camp (Ashanti) before broadening his horizons), and last, but certainly not least... Mr. "That's Why I'm On The Covaaa!" Bee Cocks.
And ahhh, yes, the conflict is set up. Day26 is meshing well with the producers, and DK is not. Hmm... what perturbs our lil' kitties?
Before I answer my own gotdamn question, riddle me this: Has Puff chosen these "elite" group of people to work with Cheri Dennis? 'Cuz that chick can't sing worth a damn! (she's cute, but that joint that she had out, "I Love You", made me believe that she has no pipe game whatsoever-- at least, with singing.)
Mann, I usually catch these episodes On-Demand, but I found myself catching the actual Sunday 9pm broadcast just to MAKE SURE HBO didn’t pull the okey-doke on the kid. They didn’t.
What’s ironic is that all the while Omar’s going off during his very last stashhouse robbery:
“You workin' a Stanfield corner, which means you workin' for a straight up punk! Ya' feel me? I'm out here in these streets every day, me and my lonesome, and where he at? Huh? Ayo, ya'll put it in his ear, Marlo Stanfield is not a man for this town, ya' dig?â€
apparently, there is a “man for this townâ€: Lil’ Kenard.
Now, Marlo and Chris can go ball in Atlantic City. Play on, playas. Better eat some lobster too, ‘cuz that’s fittin’ to be your last meal. Bunk’s got the DNA on Partlow (because of the alley beatings), and as soon as McNulty gets off his sh*t, he’s coming for that a-s.
Unless someone doesn’t get at you first for riding in the whip bumping "Ay Bay Bay". What the f-ck was that about?
(*Due to my hectic schedule, The Salt N' Pepa re-caps may not post the day immediately following the broadcast, but I promise that you WILL get your SNP dose every week. Thanks.*)
Sigh... remember what happened a few episodes ago when Spin got in the mix and sh*t got real twisted? Yeaaahh.... it happens AGAIN... but this time, she ain't the one left like a stick in the mud (you can guess who it is).
Still, any time they feature Dee-Dee on the series is a treat for me. Number one, I always thought she held her own as a female DJ, and 2)... if you notice... apparently, she's the only one that can make Sandy and Cheryl get along, albeit for a short period of time ('cuz they gang up against her!!)
Here's an extra y'all DIDN'T get to see from the show:
"Yeah I'm thick like dat/I stack like dat/I'm down like dat/I'm black like dat"-- Ladybug Mecca
Word.
What up y'all. I know this week's Throwback will be felt by TRUE HIP-HOP HEADS.
Tell me this video doesn't put you in the zone as soon as the bass hits.
And for the young'ns... click the next page, 'cuz I'm about to put y'all up on a lil' history.
This track is more than just a heavily sampled song for television songs.
Okay, I know I haven't done a Midweek Madness in a clip, but these two videos definitely deserve the title. First up for your viewing interest is the lastest offering from Swizz Beatz The Monster....
excuse me, I mean The Clown.
And no, the video's not influenced by Dead Presidents, as I misconceptually believed before viewing the clip.
"Candy Green" DISCLAIMER:If clowns freak you out, please don't watch. I don't wanna be responsible for you breaking out into hives.
I know what you're thinking. Are Swizzy and DMX sharing the crackpipe and collaborating on video treatments? Didn't this give you flashbacks of the time X was caught stealing a limo from the airport-- couldn't you have imagined him with makeup on his face during his heist?
Believe it or not, this hell of an acid trip has a "seemingly logical" explanation. [see next page].
Okay, first off the bat: I HATE Diddy’s lil’ intros to the show. And furthermore, n*gga, you thinking that you’re pale amuses me just as much as Aubrey’s “sistagirl†impressions. Fall back!
And speaking of The Valtrex Spokeswoman...
I tried to find a video that was appropriate for this episode, and I thought of course!
Why not highlight the girls that Donnie likes? (We know the truth!)
Damn, this song sucks...
EFF THAT, I WANNA SEE DONNIE HOOK UP WITH A BLACK CHICK!!!
Anyway, this episode was HIGH on the drama. But you know what? I think I’m gonna lay off of her a lil’ bitâ€" for this re-cap, at least. I gotta admit... that double-dipping sh*t was wrong.
What double-dipping sh*t am I speaking of? Well, I’m glad you asked. And no, it doesn’t involve sharing vaginal cremes or ice cream.
(Before I get into this, I just wanna state... AGAIN... that these The Wire blogs are NOT, I repeat, are NOT re-caps, they’re reactionary pieces based on what I took from the episode, meaning what caught MY attention during the viewing. You all are free to comment on things that I chose to either overlook or omit due to space. This is in response to the person that desperately felt the need to make a comment two weeks ago about me not “re-capping†this “professionallyâ€, as say, hbo.com would.. well, duh, nigga. Do I work for HBO? They’re giving you a basic PLOT SUMMARY, and I’ve said that from DAY ONE that wasn’t what I was going to do. PAY ATTENTION before you TRY to call me out on some sh*t I NEVER said I was gonna do. Thanks!)
Okay, the episode’s really called “Tookâ€, which makes sense. Lots of people get taken for a ride.
Matter of fact, sheeeeeeeeeeiittt. B-More as a whole gets taken for a long one â€" y’all seen that opener didn’t you?
I know I didn’t post my reaction piece about Ep.6, but I’m pretty sure y’all watched it, and so y’all know exactly who’s photo McNumb Nuttz and Freak-mon bluetoothed, along with Jimmy now giving an actual voice to the “Homeless Serial Killer†via cell-phone... IN A CLOSET RIGHT NEXT TO THE WIRE TAP COMPUTER.
Everyone and their mama sees it and goes B E S E R K. Especially Carcetti .
What does he do? Tells Daniels to fix this sh*t, of course, and finally makes it rain on them hoes.
Is that good news or bad news for Baltimore PD?
Good for them, bad for McNulty...
And too, too, too bad for Bunk, who’s actually still doing police work, trying to connect links to Marlo the hard right way. You can’t help but feel his frustration when he’s asked to participate in this circus. F*CK THAT!
It's interesting how HBO has these little "prequels" out about The Wire. While they're cool and insightful (not to mention foreshadowing), I've come across some videos featuring some The Wire actors that you WON'T find on HBO On-Demand. I figure I owed this to y'all, SINCE I wasn't able to recap last Sunday's episode. Enjoy.
Up first... true story-- if Omar were a rapper, you couldn't deny his rhymes. Why?
Well, at least we KNOW that the bodies he boasted about on wax were the real deal.
Peep Michael K. Williams on Rap City:
I know he's not actually gay, but I swear, he's taken that "homothug" thing to extraordinary heights...
There's no need to go into much for this one.
ALL lovers, young and old, can appreciate this. Hell, even if you ain't in love, you gotta recognize this as ONE of the best tracks of all time.
And being that it's V-Day... it's only necessary that I show it love today.
Yeah... you know what it is. No surprises. You're right.
Now, I wanna holla at all my 80's cats right now... specifically, the men, but ladies, if you had game like that, feel free to holla back, too:
HOW MUCH WERE YOU ABLE TO PULL SIMPLY BY JUST HAVING THIS SONG PLAY IN THE TAPE DECK?
Damn, LL. Pratically 20 years ago and this song STILL manages to pull a string in even the coldest of hearts. Thanks for putting it down.
Hope this brings back memories of first love, or first... whatever.
I wish everyone a beautiful, lovely and sexy Valentine's Day today-- make sure you keep it safe!
Yes! Hip-hop television’s favorite odd-couple is baaacck! Let the face-down-in-crotch singing commence!
Out of all the celebreality bullshit that’s out there, this show has to be one of the funniest and most interesting out there. I’m glad they brought this back for a second time aroundâ€"it definitely makes things lighter in your life… for 30 minutes, anyway.
So, picking up where we left off, it seems as though Sandy and Cheryl are getting along… for a short while. They’re even in a kickboxing class togetherâ€"which is better than them taking out their anger on each other. However, Salt’s a lil’ stressed out because her 16-year-old daughter Corrine is getting boy fever, and she thinks that allowing her first boy/girl party will help suppress those urges her daughter probably has to make “after-school study dates†with the power forward from 2nd period English. Yeah right.
Lil’ Corrine has only one request though: Mama Sodium has to get the world’s craziest party-planner on board. Does Pep object? Hell noâ€"she’s down!
What’s funny is that Salt actually feels a sense of rejection once she tells her daughter that Pep’s agreed to help them out. Shoot, she’s still a showstopper! She used to push it real good! You ain’t know?
Or, as she puts it--
“Remember that time I threw that adult party, and we played gestures and I gave out gift bags?â€
**I just want to address the fact that I was FULLY AWARE of the fact that the group has been given the wack azz name Day26. When I asked when they were going to announce the name, I meant on the show… DUH. However, since all of us are now up on this tidbit of information, I will refer to them as such for here on in. Thank you for your not-so-kind input. I would rather refer to them as “Those Dreamgirl-@$$ n*ggas†as someone else deemed them. Funny. Also VERY IMPORTANTâ€"The Salt N’ Pepa re-cap will commence tomorrow!
This episode begins with our guys recording yet another lackluster track that I can only assume is called “Crazy Loveâ€. The beat is very 1996/112-ish. Vocals are NOT on point for them, and for Donnie’s new joint either. I’m shocked that Danity isn’t coming that lame with their effort, though.
However, as usual, Papa John ain’t feeling NONE of it. He reaches into his bag of tricks and starts playing some track that I KNOW wasn’t maneuvered by himself. It does have bells, whistles and sirens mixed all up in it, so I can see why he would dig it. It seems like someone with ADHD would like. Guess what? This is the battle I referred to last week. Diddy’s giving Day26 and DK 48 hours to pen some lyrics, and whatever group does it the best, wins the track….
To which Aubrey gives Day26 a small prop on their pen game, but mentions,
"They ain’t got nothin’ on Danity Kane, so whuteva [insert teeth suck/neck roll here]â€.
Damn. That was almost better than her “where my money-makin’ brothas at?†comment a few seasons ago.
I thiiiiiiiiiink she’s taken the video below a liiiiiiiitle too far to the head:
Evidence of this fact is further shown by that tacky-@$$ sparkly shit she wore on her head during one of the recording sessions. Ugghhhh.
Last night was Grammy night, so naturally your regularly scheduled post (The Wire) will be postponed until a later time this week.
To be honest, I wasn't really checking for the Grammy's this year, and I haven't checked it since J-Lo rocked that green bandana and called it a dress in 2000. (and that shows you how much I've matured, back then I thought it was FLYY, but now I think it's bad taste.)
ANYWAY, I did catch Alicia Keys try once AGAIN to rock the HELL out of that "No One" song, and she did, with the help of John Mayer. Y'all like John Mayer? I dig him because he's not tryna be... well, I won't go there. He ain't JT... and I'll leave y'all to infer what I mean by that.
Did anyone check when that country singer Vince Gill said, "I just got given an award by a Beatle... has that happened to for you yet, Kanye?"
I love it when white people try to get gangsta on 'Ye onstage at award shows... really. 'Cuz they won't do it face to face.
Above and beyond all that, check 'Ye's performance here. STADIUM STATUS!
Damn. I love him, then I hate him, then I love him again. Y'all can't deny him on the performance. He did the GOTDAMN THING. I mean, I thought when I saw Yeezy perform "Stronger" with Common at MTV studio accompanied with Asian string musicians was hot-- but he stepped it WAY UP, along with glow-in-the-dark shades. I'm glad that he did, 'cuz you know hateful media types would've torn him a new one if he didn't. Eff y'all. Y'all should be honored that he would even show up to that fake sh*t... which is why I don't watch anymore.
I thought my heart was gonna break when he said, "Last night I saw you in my dreams/and my real life will start when I go sleep."
Mama West is looking down on you, smiling, please believe that.
Eric B and Rakim: Follow The Leader.
I know this is probably a favorite of many of you reading this right now... but this video holds more significance than just its permanent place on your I-Pod.
So, what up, y’all?
As you all know, it’s Black History Month, and its commonplace to highlight certain important facts in our history. Well... this right here is not only important to hip-hop history, I felt like it was definitely an important era in Black history as well, so we’re gonna give it some due today.
Relaxâ€" and take notes.
This year marks the 20th Anniversary of Yo! MTV Raps, which enjoyed a run from 1988-1995.
For those of you who don’t know, Yo!MTV Raps was a two-hour long program hosted by Ed Lover and Doctor Dre (some of you younger ones may be more familiar with their work as HOT 97 on-air personalities). The show, which highlighted the latest hip-hop videos (If you didn’t get it, it was the first program to premiere the Eric B and Rakim joint.). It was the first of its kind, paving the way for shows such as BET’s Rap City and MTV’s in-house replicas such as Direct Effect and Sucker Free. Most importantly, it brought hip-hop videos into the homes of cable subscribers (and skeptics) in Middle America, thus further solidifying the momentum of this ever-growing culture.
It's the 8th anniversary of the passing of Christopher Lee Rios, better known as Big Pun, undoubtedly, one of the most talented emcees to set a mike ablaze. Claim to fame: he was the first Latino solo rapper to sell over a million LPs. You know, it's hard to believe how old these rappers would be when you calculate their age from their birth years... and in November, Pun would've made 36. Damn.
And of course, you always have to wonder... would Pun still be that hot today?
Honestly, there has been stuff that I hated, and stuff that I loved from Pun, that makes me realize that while he's not in my Top 5 Emcees, yet I am definitely cognizant of his skill.
There is, however, one track that I will ALWAYS be feeling (and will probably feel this way forever), because of one not-so-simple tongue twister. This song/video also makes me give the Don Cartagena a pass, too.
I know y'all will agree-- it's only right that this is this week's Throwback video.
Damn, y’all. Was someone feeling themselves a bit too much last night? And for once, it wasn’t fake-@$$ Christina Aguilera! (She ain’t off the hook though, Ms. “Kick Me and You’ll Catch Chlamydia†has a role to play in this, too).
At the beginning of the episode, I thought it was going to be reaaaally boring. The recording sessions for the guys (Will they give these n*ggas a group name, or WHAT?) were VERY lackluster, ESPECIALLY Robert’s. . I didn’t think Rob and his ego was gonna get touched like that, but he went all crazy (S. Johnâ€"[we might as well just deem him that] has a more eloquent description of his behavior, which I’ll get into later) and started complaining about how his vocals were being picked apart, and yada dada, other ish like that. Whatever.
I knew the male ego was as thin as his baby hair… but damn.
Before we jump to the next page, let me just say that I found myself actually liking that “Poetry†song that DK was recording, and I do not belong to their basic fan demographic (meaning, I am not a white female. which, if you peeped the episode, happens to be the make up of most of the fans that approached them in Times Square). Heh… we all have a song that would make you smack the shyt outta yourself for liking it (i.e. “Duffle Bag Boy†or “Last Niiiiiight, I couldn’t even get an answaaaaâ€â€" seriously, that’s my joint). But that’s not here nor there.
You want some react quotes? Or quotes YOU can react to?
Sheeeeeeiiiiiit. This episode was chock’ full of ‘em.
Where oh where do I begin?
I know that most of you peeped this episode waaaay before it aired (in order to accommodate your Sunday night for the Superbowlâ€" as I did, so as I am writing this, there will be no shoutouts because it’s Saturday night), so I’m gonna try to keep it brief, and as usual, not write a straight re-cap, but reaction piece. That’s what I should start calling these thingsâ€" not re-caps, but reaction pieces.
Sometimes (like last week), show openers only have to do with a slight plot twist or a minor scene. Vondas providing Marlo with that celly proved to be quite crucial the story. Why?
Weeelll... have any of you ever seen a movie called Pay It Forward?
Okay, okay, I know... what went on wasn’t as saccharine-y sweet as the little boy's plan.. and it's slightly altered, but still makes sense... but let me back it up and break it down so you’ll understand.
I’m waaaaay past the 106 and Park phase of my life (throw me back to Video Soul and Donnie's green eyes anyday!) so make no mistake about itâ€" I do not watch this show. Honestly, I haven’t peeped it since G-Unit was on the show plugging that... ahem... interested Beg For Mercy album. But that’s neither here nor there.
Sometimes, veeeeeery rarely, but sometimes, the current Light-skinned Negro and Boriqua of the dia that they rotate as hosts highlight something that’s worth checking out at least once. I did not catch this during it’s original broadcast, but I received a heads up about it via e-mail, and thought I’d share it with y’all.
Peep the video of 23-year-old Andy Tshitenge doing his thing on 106 & Park on January 25th. The Boston native won their “How She Move†contest, after smashing the audition to even be considered for the contest. Tshitenge has dreams of becoming a hip-hop/dance choreographer. Think he can put it down?
Should Omarion and Chris Brown be a lil’ worried?
