Janelle Monae and The Cool Kids

I don't like to advertise music that much. In some ways, it is sometimes good that you're the only person who likes the music you like. When it comes to music, for the most part, people can't appreciate sh*t. And I'm sure that's how classical-music-lovers feel about me. But sometimes I like the world to know. I want some people to understand what my arbitrary definition of good is and appreciate it for its objective truth. For the most part, I think I have my audience's musical pulse down.

Well anyways, I got new people to add:



Janelle Monae - Metropolis: Suite I of IV "The Chase"

I know I've covered her before, but she didn't have an album out when I covered her. She just released a concept album called Metropolis, that's divided into 4 parts. Her management team made the decision that people don't listen to whole albums anymore, they just pick the songs they like. Instead of releasing one huge album, she's releasing 4 mini-albums. That way, she doesn't make 20 songs that only capture her at one stage of her life. Instead, she makes 4 albums with 5 songs each and spreads out the release dates. By doing this, she can make more recent music each time she releases and the anticipation bubbles while you wait for each gem. What's good about this album? Have you ever heard of a 5 song album and think it was good? I didn't think I could either until I heard this one. And it works, you get all you need and yet you crave for more. If this particular album art doesn't intrigue you, then it's probably not for you.

The Cool Kids - Totally Flossed Out EP



Their fashion sense is the same as their rapping style: do it to be creative instead of trying to act cool. And you can tell because the music speaks for itself. Mikey Rocks and Chuck Inglish are the duo that make up The Cool Kids. What's dope is that the name fits. You can tell they have fun when they rap. And it's honest all around. For example, on one of their songs "A Little Bit Cooler" they talk about getting knocked for being the first ones to dress throwback 80's and then everyone started joining the 80's fashion bandwagon when the water was warm enough to jump in. I wouldn't necessarily dress 80's, but goddamn I can appreciate the situation. But they say ascots are coming back this season.

U.S. House of Representatives passes Armenian Genocide Resolution

Bush is pissed.

Well maybe not pissed, but perturbed that no one cares about his "War on Terror." Can anyone say that to themselves in the mirror and take themselves seriously?

"I'm fighting the War on Terror. My enemy is terror."

You can't do it. It's hard. It doesn't even sound as good as the war on drugs. And no one's even fighting back on the war on drugs.

Anyways, the Armenians won a point on this one. If you think about it, it's ridiculous. Germany admitted to the Holocaust and no one really synonymizes Germany with Nazis anymore. They only seem to label people who happen to be Nazis as Nazis. If Turkey admits to this, Armenia will feel better about themselves. Turkey will experience a slight decrease in self-esteem. Overall, almost no one in America will care. In the long run, they're not going to connect Turks with mass murder the same way they don't connect Germans with mass murder. How does anyone take a stance on this issue when the people who went through it are long gone (maybe not entirely true)? It's really just a bunch of stories passed down on both sides to kids who grow up believing what they were told (ok, there are historians out there confirming it, but still). Mass murdering is bad. Trying to pit the blame on a country under a long duration of time that spans generations for mass murder is not worst, but it's also bad, but most likely not as bad as mass murdering.

Bush urges rejection of Armenia genocide resolution

Bush Rejects Armenian Genocide

I know that Filipinos and Armenians have had their share of not-so-nice words here and there. But there's one thing we don't touch, that's the Armenian Genocide. It sucks that it happened. If you don't believe it did, you don't give an opinion about it. But you don't touch it.

That's like telling the Jews that the Germans ain't do no Holocaust. I'm pretty sure that sh*t stings.

What sucks is that Bush is trying to keep up relations to gain a better position in that unpopular war of ours.

Gangster

I'm excited to see American Gangster. I don't think I've been this excited about a movie since Hustle & Flow. People who seek opportunity, entrepreneurs, hustlers, they're all suckers for movies about makin' it. I've said it before: there is something very American about it. America, land of the free to make as many chips as you want.

The post is really about gangsters. I was going to write about the The Wire's Avon Barksdale and his drug empire, but I'll save that for another post. To be honest, I have a lot of respect for real gangsters. It's the code they live by.

Denzel Washington: "Honesty. Integrity. Family."

Those are all things I live by. Gangsters, these are men who embraced who they are and decided to make something out of it. They did not wait for a handout or wait for Teri Hatcher to say the wrong thing, so they can force ABC to pay for "diversity scholarships." These are people who took the good and bad about themselves and did what they do. Especially the family part, they were only made better by sticking together. I really believe in that stuff. Sometimes, as I peace out some of my friends, I say "family." Some of them understand, some of them don't get it. I mean, how can they get it? If you're so ingrained in the system, how does it make sense to look out for anyone besides number 1? Can you put "honesty, integrity, family" on a resume? No! And for some reason, telling someone in an interview that you're honest and have integrity means that you're not. It has to be proven through some internship where you probably followed the same process of not being honest on your resume or interview in order to get the internship. It's good to have a nice house, nice car, some security, but in the end, we are what we live by.

I don't care

I don't care what anyone says. Even if he does make his beats on a Casio and a lil' kid can come up with his rhymes. He's the only new dude right now that is actively worth getting up and dancing to.

Yooooooooooooouuuuuuuuuuuuuuuu!

Where you come from

I often think about being born in San Francisco. I lived in Northern California for the first two years of my life and my dad got a job offer in Los Angeles. As far as I remember, we lived in the Valley ever since, whether it was in North Hollywood or my short stint in Sun Valley. But as I walk the streets of Berkeley, I often think that my story began up here. The U.S. has become very regionalist. Everyone seems to be reppin' their territory, which was a side effect of the East vs. West rivalry of the Tupac-Biggie days. I try not to, but I can't help but criticize these fake Kanye-looking freshmen kids who wear all-print bandanas on their necks, fitted caps cocked to the side, loud T-shirts, kicks that cost upwards of $100, and predictably no money in the bank. And they're all from San Diego. When was San Diego the rallying point for fake hood playful gangster fashion sense? I would take you more seriously if you had the emo eye-patch haircut. But I digress. I've always believed that you owe something to the people and the places that helped shaped you become the person you are today. Even though I was only in the North for the 2 years I would probably remember the least out of my life, I feel like it was important I was there. Who knows? Maybe while I was up there, I got a little bit more oxygen in my brain than I would have gotten if I was born in the Valley. Maybe that's why I had a little bit more sense growing up. And maybe it was good that I left when I did. I could have been part of the hyphy movement. But either way, it's important to remember where you came from. Even though my heart is in the Valley, my presence here in Berkeley is a constant reminder that I owe a huge something to the North.

This Protest Bullsh*t

I'm not going to say too much about all the controversy surrounding this clip. The Filipinos (who I have not included myself in this particular case) are protesting and want to boycott ABC for airing this clip in all its ignorance. I think I've already given too much of my attention to this nonsense.

1.) The clip and the statement was funny. Filipinos, in general, laugh at racial jokes on a regular, but we're not allowed for other people to joke about us? Where was the riot when you heard the countless "I'm not Chinese. I'm Filipino." or "I'm not Japanese. I'm Filipino" jokes were getting tossed around? Where was the 1000-signature petition? Would you not call that racist: the fact that America thinks Filipinos look/are treated just like any other Asian?

2.) The joke was very founded. Check ichiwichi.blogspot.com for solid reasoning.

3.) Filipinos who are trying to petition and boycott ABC are making Filipinos look bad. We're like the brown people who cried wolf because the next time some real oppression goes down, no one's going to take us seriously. We will have been known to react to one-liners and label it as oppression. The Jena 6 is real oppression. If you don't know about the Jena 6, look it up.

4.) Here's my last point. To fellow Filipinos, shame on you for watching Desperate Housewives (sorry to those who actually watch it)! How can you logically protest one line on a TV show that chronicles the lives of 4/5 upper middle class white women, (yes Eva Longoria counts as white) which the producers of the show have decided was more interesting than any of your stories or struggles to put on a screen? The show invalidates your existence in American culture. You should be lucky they decided to sprinkle you on in this vanilla cake party. Yet, you guys decided to protest one funny line on a show that you should have boycotted a long time ago. Shame on you!

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