People over time will lead us to believe anything if we go for the okee-doke all the time. Don't believe everything you hear and be not deceived by what you see because seeing is NOT believing and if you didn't hear it from the horse's mouth all that other garbage is nothing but rhetoric, hear-say, and most likely conjecture. Facts are even made to be altered depending on who's telling the story, who's writing the book, who's directing the movie, and who's editing the nightly sound-bite. Which brings me to yesterday's tributes to the late great Reverend Doctor Martin Luther King Junior. That Brotha was a soldier in the battlefield and one Hell-of-a public speaker. Those speeches of his are some immortal words in the living battle of good over evil as a testament to fighting against Spiritual wickedness in both high and low places. The man defended the principle that if we are civilized human beings, then why are we the people not afforded these rights that we find are inalienable and inherent that all people?

OK, maybe I should back up here and paint you a picture. It was the 60's that everyone talks about. America was eating its young and slaughtering it's new and invigorating leadership. Two Kennedy's (John & Robert), Malcolm X, and Martin Luther King were all murdered in broad daylight as a public displays of terror. I mean, you don't get any higher than President in this country, do you? On the other hand, there were the Hippies and Black Panthers. College campuses became hotbeds for political demonstrations and organizing on a massive level. There was that nasty little war call Vietnam which affected most, if not all of America's citizenry by the time the decade was over. There was so much trouble in this country that by the time 1970 had rolled up, a 10 year secret domestic progrom aimed at so-called dissidents in general, and Black organizations in particular called Counter-Intelligence Program or COINTELPRO had succeeded at most of it's objectives of disrupting any and all social movements that were.

In the midst of all that, you had Dr. King walking the walk and talking the talk. He made sense and people followed. He organized and galvanized the masses to get up and do something. There are strength in numbers and there is wisdom in Dr. King's actions. So next time you think about him, think about a man so powerful he not only stood up for what is right, but was also willing to sit down and address the wrongs. When his life was on the line, he faced certain death and DIDN'T PUNK OUT. If you listen to the speech he gave the night before he was shot in the neck by that assassin's bullet, you can hear it in his voice and see it in his face. All this shit going on in 2002 in his name is a bunch of pomp and circumstance. I suggest reading a book like Let The Trumpet Sound - his autobiography. Learn something so you can earn something.

Blaqness

Saturday: November 17th, 2001
GUEST DREAD - Will.i.am - Lost Change

Black Eyed Peas is stuff that I do for work. Lost Change is me having fun. No way is Lost Change work. I cored a movie for the Internet. If you go to www.lostchange.com, they have the movie broken down into 13 segments. You'll hear one song each episode. But the style they allowed me to Score it in was them telling me to do the Hell I wanted to do. I get that from the Peas label as well in terms of doing what we wanna do, but it's a different thing. With this project I'm doing music for a mood by painting sonic backgrounds for things that are happening on screen. I guess that's what music is anyway; you're painting background to events that happened in your life. So by doing Lost Change I learned a lot about scoring in the sense that producing music should be done in scoring fashion with anything in life. It wasn't like a Soundtrack. That's where you got some stupid-ass muthafucka that sits there and puts together songs that have nothing to do with the muthafuckin' film. Then you got a whole bunch of Homies on a record that have nothing to do with nothing. This was totally different. I had to look at the film, and look at each scene. That's why some shit on the record breaks down and slows down and there's a lot of dead space, or there's instrumental solos with a guitar and organ because there's talking at that point and time in the movie. So I had to score around dialogue and moods. After I finished the music, that's when I brought the MC's in to rhyme on it. I'm not hating Soundtracks, but nowadays the process isn't like it used to be. Back in the day-day when music was music, Soundtracks were Soundtracks. Now you just have Compilations that represent movies with the title of the movie on the CD cover. It's called cross-promotions. Like on Kelloggs cereal when you have a muthafuckin' "Win a Barbie" contest on the back. You know Barbie ain't got nothin' to do with Kelloggs and Kelloggs ain't got nothin' to do with Barbie.

So I learned a lot in terms of writing music by using events that happen in life and score around those. Lost Change does not necessarily mean money. The movie itself is about how some Cat lost some money and some otha muthafucka found it. Yea, that's what it's about. But what I meant by it was something totally different. I mean it like a Lost Change. Like if you're trying to change who you are to meet other people's expectations, then muthafucka you lost trying to change when you should just stay who you are and don't lose yourself. ‘Cause a lotta Cats that haven't found themselves are tryin' to change into somebody else's standards or expectations. It's really about staying true to your beliefs and what you're about. And this release really symbolizes that in my life. At one point in time I found myself trying to meet other people's expectations when Black Eyed Peas became construction men and we tried to build bridges to bring people closer together. When in actuality, Cats are gonna be Cats. Bridging The Gaps is a good thing to do, but only build the bridge. Don't expect people to cross that bridge right when it's built. Lost Change metaphorically speaking fits my mental state as far what I'm going through personally. I was very happy too, because I didn't know that I was gonna be in the same series as producers like Jay-Dee, Pete Rock, Marley Marl, and after mine is gonna be Ahmir (?uestlove) from The Roots. That's Dope!

At Meshack's persistence I'll speak on the Osama Bin Laden, Anthrax, and America situation. Think about it: right now, Meshack Blaq Gums and Will.i.am.black.two can go out and get little flags to sell. America is Hot right now! America's a product right now. How many flags do you see? And the thing about the American flag is it's a logo that nobody owns. That's not copy written so we can make flags right now, put our little stamp on it, and blow up! America's Hot! All of this right now is ALL about money. At the end of the day I don't care what anybody says; it ain't about religious nothin'. It's about politics and finance. Right now they tell us the economy is down. People not spending dough right now just aren't spending it right now. But those people that aren't spending dough are still working, meaning that they're still saving money; meaning in ten years the economy will Boom! It's gonna skyrocket higher than it did when it plummeted. Don't look at right now, look down the road. All those people that lost their jobs, had jobs where they were gonna get laid off eventually anyway. What about the people that don't got jobs that are still working? Anybody that lost a job, the shit wasn't in stone anyway. All it represents is a product of a sick-ass world that's male-dominant. And that's unbalanced and un-equal when everything at the end of the day is a product and everything has a price on it. From when you're born, the doctor that gave birth to you got paid. When you get sick and go to the supermarket to get your little Advil, to when you die and have to pay for all the burial cost; from death to birth to illness to sex to pleasure to everything - it has a price on it. You have a price on you! Anyone does. So when you live in a society like that, then all the stuff that's happening isn't shocking. And I think it all goes back to the fact that we don't use 100% of our mind space. Everything is based around physical growth. Like how people work out and go to the Crunch Gym with the mirror on one wall and the windows as the opposite wall, and do their little crunches or treadmills? This whole society is based on a ‘look good for now' mentality without evolving Spiritually. I'm not talking about Spiritually as in people claiming to be hardcore Christians, Jews, or Muslims because those muthafuckas are killing each other anyway. If they were really Spiritual, then violence would be looked at in a totally different way. Right now the biggest gangs in the world are religious groups. That isn't Spirituality, that's just a click to feel comfortable with all your inner-flaws, and the things that are wrong within yourself that you failed to handle on your own. Jesus isn't gonna save you. You gotta save God within yourself. Like when you're thirsty; water don't drink you - you drink it. And muthafuckas are drownin' in religion. You gotta get a cup. One cup will do. And drink it to clear your thirst. So everything that's happening is a product of non-direction and us all being slaves to this society. Because we wake up everyday to get money to pay bills, to do the same thing again. And no one's growing but the little bank accounts that you don't even hold. You're just a number that clicks on when you stick your plastic in a machine. Which is cool ‘cause I have a credit card to go get me my little food an' shit. But Lost Change fits that whole notion because people are Lost and they need to Change.

Do you know how much money they collected for all these relief funds? Over a billion dollars but there ain't even close to a billion people in this accident. That's like McDonalds. You know how they have those little things where they collect money at the counter? On the side of those loose-change collection jars is their Ronald McDonald logo. Being that their innovators, it's still cross promotion. And that's sad but it made me think. With the money that they collected at the those jars. When it's like $9.87 for your bill and you walk away and say, "Ahh, fuck the change", how much spare change gets put in that pot at the end of the day? End of the week? End of the month? Multiply that times all the McDonalds.That's like millions to billions of dollars a year that they make with just little nickles, dimes, and quarters, right? Then they take a portion of that to do advertising. So basically they're generating free advertisement from that "Help the children in Boombabwe" shit when half of that money doesn't even go to those children in Boombabwe. Ask Apl, he'll tell you! Did you know that Apl is a product of one of those Adopt-a-child Foundation? Seriously Dog, that's sick.

I wouldn't be surprised if it was the U.S. that did that 9/11 shit on some inside-FBI-Cat-that-just-got-mad. And the whole bombing of Afghanistan is a cover-up for it. Think about it; the U.S. has some sick Cats. Maybe it was some like, rebellious Mason that's trying to shake shit up. You never know. What about how most planes these days don't need a human to fly them because the computers calculate them to where they gotta to go. How about if the muthafuckas were already destined to go that way, fly that fast, turned left where it was supposed to go, and the pilot wasn't even involved. Auto-pilot Dog! And what if all that hero shit is just movies; it ain't really happen that way ‘cause nobody was aware of it. Just think. I ain't sayin' it really happened that way. I don't know nothin'. All I know is I gotta get on a plane in an hour to go to Hawaii.

But all of this is a result of us not living right. When I say live right, I'm not talking about cheating on your wife or shallow shit like that. I'm talking about on a mental capacity. The fact that I'm talking to you on the telephone; that to communicate I utter words and sounds to represent my thoughts. How do I know that these words that I'm speaking represent what I'm thinking 100%? There's words in French that can't be translated into English and vice-versa. So for that very fact alone shouldn't we be able to communicate mentally to where I invite you into my mind-space? Therefore lies wouldn't even exist because lies and truth are a result of communication not being done right. The words that I'm speaking to you to describe these thoughts are the deliverer of thought to you. When if my mind was working properly, I could just think to you and vice-versa. The best things in life aren't things, and words of things. And this is all a result too, of people not living right. Buddah and Christ were desperately wanted personalities. That's why Christ was killed, that's why Buddah disappeared, and that's why witches are burned. Why is it that I can find somebody that could build a bomb, but I can't find nobody that could bend a spoon with their mind? Because a person that could bend a spoon is more dangerous than a muhfucka that could build a bomb. Someone that could use more of their mind towards if they wanna get something don't have to get up and go somewhere and get it. And there's people like that in the world. Seriously, right now if I wanted to get an uzi - I can get an uzi. It's America Dog. But the people that can levitate, move things with their mind, have telepathic capabilities, that can astral-project themselves; I bet you can't find these people. Are they on the low on purpose? Do they not want to be known?

But everything is a result of us livin' wrong. If the Pope was truly a man of God, he would be tellin' a lotta muhfuckas some shit. But that Nigga ain't sayin' shit. What kills me the most is that you got Bush on TV sayin' "God Bless America"right before we go bomb Afghanistan. Then Bin Laden says, "Thank God for what happened in New York". What God are they talking about? I just wanna know. Is it the same muhfucka? ‘Cause if it is, he's fuckin' both of us. Really, I don't know. Seriously, our president's name is Bush. His Homie's name is Colin, and his Homie's name is Dick. Seriously, that's the shit we gettin' fucked by right now. It's funny, but it's true. People need to wake up. I might be fun natured and dance a mean jigg in the videos, but my daily thoughts are things that are heavier. And you can't put that in my music. If I put that in my music, I'd be dead.

As told to Meshack 11/01/01

Monday: October 22nd, 2001
GUEST DREAD - MR. CHEEKS

That World Trade shit bugged me out, Kid. I was in New York right on 49th Street. And I was about to go do Rap City that mornin' when muhfuckas told me to turn on and look at the TV. You know how they thought some plane ran into the shit? Then you see the other plane hit it? When that shit happened I ain't know what to think, Kid! I wasn't like, nerved-out. But I was feelin' like that's fucked up, God! Niggaz' knocked down the Twin Towers, Kid. I ain't even know they was gon' fall! That Nigga just tried to chop that shit and then knock that shit into somethin' else. What made that Nigga do that shit, God? What the fuck is on y'all Niggaz' minds, Nigga?!? I mean, you gon' take over a plane just to kill yourself, God? He was tryin' to see Allah, HARD!!! He made everybody go with him to see Allah. These Niggaz take whole planes and then knock thousands of people under the ground. You got people out there talkin' 'bout they still lookin' for survivors, God. Come on God. Go get THAT Nigga, God!! Niggaz gotta fuck everything right now. Yo, go get that Laden Nigga! Word up man, Niggaz is buggin'. Stop playin' Kid! Now they showin' new footage of Bin Laden? How the fuck you get footage from this Nigga and ain't kill 'em?!? What the fuck you get new footage for and ain't get the dudes that reported that to you? Word up, go get that Nigga! Y'all Niggaz' is buggin'!! Get that Nigga before he do somethin' else! Niggaz talkin' about when we gonna attack? We shoulda been attacked them Niggaz. Yo, wipe them Niggaz out!! Wipe Son out, Kid. Just send the message too. 'Cause right now Bin Laden is holdin' this shit down, Kid. Niggaz' is nerved right now comin' up with strategies for this Nigga. This Nigga lives in the grave, God. Go under there and get these Niggaz, Son! Word up, send some Niggaz in there with some Jack Daniels; Niggaz that's ready to go! Get them lil' Army Niggaz amped up and go take care of that business, God. 'Cause as long as he's livin', Niggaz gon' have they little crowd over there lookin' around. As long as that Niggaz' livin', Niggaz' gon' be lookin' around over there and everybody over here gon' be livin' in fear.

The first time I got on a plane after that, they was goin' all in my bags an' shit, like I'ma do somethin'! Go ahead, look in the bag. Its some socks in there. You want a pair of socks, Nigga? Want a pair of them sneakers? Here take the shit! I ain't got no fuckin' bomb equipment. I ain't tryin' to do nothin' but go and land. I just wanna land. But that's what's goin' on now. Niggaz' lookin' at us like we did somethin'. They still lookin' at you even though they can't be thinkin' about all that racism shit now. Y'all can forget about lookin' at the Black Nigga walkin' down the block now, Nigga. You better go watch out for the Bin Ladin lookin' muhfuckas. Word up, leave us alone for a lil' hot two years right now. Let us get our money on. You can't have no racial profile now, Kid. If you wanna racial profile, send all them other Niggaz back home. Now we all united all of a sudden? Niggaz' been united! I don't know what they talkin' about now. Niggaz I touch ground with; we always been hollarin' "One".

Now the Politic Niggaz is like, "Oh shit!" Republicans and Democrats; everybody teamin' up now. If y'all Niggaz was teamed up before, none of this probably woulda happened, Jerky Boys! Y'all Niggaz' beefin' so that Bin Laden Nigga was like, "Fuck it, they beefin'. Send Sons over there and let 'em know it's Real over here. What y'all beefin' about?" Niggaz came in droppin' shit. Niggaz do shit that we don't even know. You don't know what that World Trade Center shit was for, God. Them Niggaz know! Somebody know. This ain't even our War. That's that Government War right now. All we doin' is tryin' ta live, Kid! They fuckin' up our lil' rotation right now, man. That Nigga fucked up a whole lotta shit. Guards on the highways an' shit? Come on, Kid. Go over THERE and get that Nigga. Yo Kid, you have to clear the streets up and go get this Nigga, man! Extra security botherin' Niggaz for no reason. Catchin' Niggaz with other shit. Now when a Nigga gets stopped, he gotta be real paranoid 'bout puttin' his weeds out an' shit. These Niggaz' got everything goin' down so they can catch you off-guard with shit. Now Niggaz is like, "Oh shit, I'm goin' to jail for real!" 'Cause them Niggaz is lookin' out like if they don't get Bin Laden, they gon' get whoever look like this Nigga. And this Nigga got other Niggaz that look like him now. Word up, Kid! They got a Bin Laden look-alike, Kid. I been studyin' that news shit. I gotta stay with that news; I be lookin' at that shit makin' sure it an't comin' nowhere where we at right now. Lookin' at that shit like Yo, "Now Niggaz is on they job and they findin' out about new secrets." Why there so many fuckin' secrets, Kid? Now they sayin' a Russian plane got hit the other day on some accident shit? I don't know about no accidents no more. That's 5 or 6 planes, Kid. Aaliyah's shit went down, 4 of these Niggaz crashin' into shit. Come on, man. That's too much, God! How the Pentagon gon' get hit, God? How the Pentagon gon' get hit, Kid?!? They supposed to be watchin' out for the whole world over here! Pentagon?!? Stop playin', God. Y'all playin'! Somebody's doin' somethin' wrong, God. Word up, when Clinton was in office shit was ahhite though. Bill was chillin'! Bill was smashin' out chicks; hookin' up shit like, "Yo listen Kid, dead that over there ahhite? One!" Doin' him! Now a Nigga up in Harlem chillin' with a 125th & Harlem t-shirt on. Word up.

>As told to Meshack on Friday 10/5/01

Sunday: October 14th, 2001
Fate Of The State Of The Nation

The shock of a sneak attack has subsided and now America is at War. Usama Bin Laden is feelin' what he's been beggin' for and the Taliban Government in Afghanistan is gonna suffer the same fate at the hands of US Bomber planes. And that's just the beginning. Revenge is the energy being reciprocated in the name of Justice. Before all is said and done, there will be troops in the name of President Bush's Crusade, marching into enemy territory. Death is the sure outcome for many on both sides in the guise of retribution. Bloodshed in the name of the Christian/Muslim/Hebrew God is the bottom line. And this is what we call Civilization?

Now the latest domestic scare is called Anthrax or "suspicious white powder" being sent in the mail and found on airplanes. Tom Ridge has his work cut out for him as the newly appointed head of Homeland Security. Or was it Homeland Defense? Is the sky falling or what? Everybody's so shook right now, people are afraid to leave their homes for fear of attack. We're bombing a place in the world so backwards, they're already in the stone age. Imagine trying to blow up every cave in the Hindu Kush... That's like using a "million dollar missile to blow up a ten dollar tent", as said by US Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld. And so what if and when the Taliban & Usama Bin are but a vaporized pile of rubble like those innocent civilians who perished, and military personnel who became casualties in the WTC and Pentagon suicide plane bombings.

And what about the sweeping if not unanimous and immediate changes in laws affecting our individual Civil Liberties? All at the expense of the Justice Department's overzealous efforts spearheaded by US Attorney General John Ashcroft and his various branches of Law Enforcement to wipe out a terrorist threat after the fact. If the CIA, FBI, and Justice Department had been on their jobs, this would have never happened. Someone was asleep on their watch and no one is investigating that. Now President Bush is asking every child in America for a dollar, throughout the school system, to feed the children of Afghanistan. Last time I checked, about 100,000 hard-working Americans lost their jobs in the last 30 days. And the economy is in a Recession? Or is it really a worldwide Depression? We all know the solution to that is a Worldwide War.

So tighten your belt America because we're about to be broken down to our very last compound - both from within and without. Be careful what you believe and what you fall for. Everything is not what it seems and the people you may have thought were fools a month ago all of a sudden seem like they're in control and in charge? Remember, if it's too good to be true - it's just that. No matter how unbelievably mind-boggling nor fantastically out of this world this shit seems, I'm telling you all that there's more to this than meets the eye. Furthermore and finally, when the truth is fully revealed - don't be surprised or shocked to find out something you probably never wanted to face... Life is upside down. Our concept of normal was already twisted. Could these be our worst nightmares coming to life? Or could it possibly be the end of the world as we know it? War on all levels is the new reality. Religious, Political, Geographical, Biological, and yes, Drugs are all on the table being fought for like never before. The ultimate loser is the Human Spirit.

Signed-
That Peaceful Protagonist

Tuesday: September 11th, 2001
American United

Here I was prepared to write about all the fun we had in New York City during the MTV Video Music Awards and whatnot when I was rudely awakened like everyone else to the utter destruction by commercial flights of the Twin Towers of the World Trade Center. As the shutdown of America unfolded and all domestic and international flights were grounded, it was realized that four planes were hijacked and re-routed on suicide missions. Then it was announced that The Pentagon was hit by one of the planes and the fourth had crashed near Camp David. By the time the two towers had collapsed while broadcast on every major television station, I knew there was no need to do anything except sit and watch.

What is really unfortunate and hits home is the fact that I travel quite often on both American and United Airlines. I also know plenty of people who travel through the World Trade Center subway system on their way to work every morning. Then all those who were lost have families that will never be the same. And who are we gonna go to war with in retaliation? It's all fucked up now! Things are gonna change. It'll never be the same again. So before you go and panic like the sky is falling, let's wait and see what happens next. It's time for the American United to please stand up!

What the Fuck?

Thursday: August 16th, 2001
50 Niggaz Deep

That's my new favorite cut right now by Drunken Master and Lola Damone off that Fubu Compilation ‘bout ta drop in a hot minute. Out of the fifty attributes given for Niggaz and Bitches I'd say I'd qualify for over half and know enough Niggaz to tip the scales all the way in my direction. As for Bitchez? Let's just say I wish I knew more of ‘em like the ones Lola talks about in the song. Why? Because when you subtract the Niggaz & Bitchez from the equation, what you get is HEART. And everybody knows when you have heart you'll have money and just about everything else. Like my man Jadakiss told me, "I got a lotta problems but money ain't one of ‘em!" But as my girl Lola would say on the song, "I roll with nothin' but them pretty Bitches, witty Bitches, them never actin' shitty Bitches, tattoo on the titty Bitches" Or how ‘bout, "Them pretty nail Bitches, bail you outta jail Bitches, keepin' you focused when you tryin' to get that mail Bitches. Cheddar-chase Bitches, never actin' fake Bitches, quick to put they foot up the ass o' them outta place Bitches"

But I could say the same thing about "Let's Get Money" by G Dep, P Diddy and Black Rob about a month ago. That was my shit! Especially the video with the kids doin' the now-played-out Uptown Shimmy. I'm even feelin' the video version of "Bad Boy For Life". But let me tell you, there's nothin' like bein' up in the club way outta town and hear a song like Lil' Mo's "Gangsta" for the first time. Somethin' about hearin' some West Coast influenced shit, or in Drunken Master's case, altogether foreign but somehow in sync with where ya at for whatever reason, for the first time. Shit sticks with you after that.

LOOK, the new issue is fidden ta be out nest week. We put in a lot of frequent flyer miles, hotel stays, and out of town visits to make it possible. Kronick got Dr. Dre to break us off a proper chunk of that Funky stuff. St. Lunatics recognized familia a year after we were back for the first time. Pastor Troy and Yukmouth spoke on a lotta things, but Master P was one person they had a bad taste for like the "Bootylicious Remix" video for Destiny's Child. Ladies, I know wigs and weaves are part of the illusion, but for the sake of Diana Ross could you please get better stylists for when you come "Street"? Anyways, we got AZ givin' up the goods on his video shoot with Joe. We also got Bilal speaking on comparisons to Jim Morrison and the like. Naturally, the Short Attention Span Shit (SASS) is all there and for the first time in a long time this is feeling like a Real Magazine. Sounds funny to put it out there like that, but it is. So yea, the new issue is almost here. We got some crazy video footage that we're puttin' together for I don't know what. And the site is about to undergo another layer of unadulterated information uploading.

Uh oh, my Nigga Ja Rule and my Bitch Jlo are on the tube right now. Gotta go, gotta go!

I'm Real!

Monday: July 9th, 2001
Monday's Monday

"That's the day slavery begins. A lot of us been sleeping. Great men that they educate are murderers and robbers of this earth." The opening verse of a not-so-famous Black Uhuru tune called "Mondays". I was once at a Fela Kuti show in San Diego on some Grassroots Parks & Recreation event when I overheard this Brotha tell anotha how for the last 20 years he's always made it a practice to take both Friday AND Monday off work for stress reasons. But he also worked 12 hour days when he was on for those three days in. That was almost 12 years ago to the month. I ain't had a "Day Job" for anyone else for more than eleven of those twelve. But my work ethic is a lot different from the traditional and non-traditional sense. I work when the necessity comes up, when the drive and motivation of coming out with a new issue hits home hard, and when I know there are bills to pay, and pay, and pay... This can be seen on our guest book prominently as one of our reformed fans saw the light of our sarcasm in his earnest endeavor for the almighty dollar. Now this should come as no surprise due to the fact that Human nature dictates your desires based on one's environs. We live in the biggest city in one of the richest states in the wealthiest Nation on earth. "In the abundance of water, the fool is thirsty" - Bob Marley said so in "Rat Race". Now marinate on that.

On another Marley note, "Man to Man is so unjust. Children you don't know who to trust. Your worst enemy could be your best friend. And your best friend, your worst enemy." That lesson folded neatly on the dresser comes from "Who The Cap Fits". Are you noticing anything about the titles of my man's songs? Kinda go with the lyrics, huh? But look deeper into the lyrics and one will find life-affirming jewels to build upon. Very creative, you know? Can we say the same for today's Hip Hop? Well, KRS-One is arguably the lyrical equivalent of say, Bob Marley in a Hip Hop sense. But NOBODY in Hip Hop or probably anywhere else in music except maybe Michael Jackson or the Beatles have sold over three-hundred-million records and counting around the globe. I'll wager that people know about Bob in all the wrong places for all the right reasons and cherish his gift of Reggae music for more than the inside-out funky weed-induced rhythms. They're called Songs of Freedom or Rebel Music, if you will.

I bring this up because we have to be careful with those close to us. As of this past week of the 4th, no less than two households on my block had police and paramedics called to break-up domestic disputes that involved drinking, partying, disagreements, and ultimately violence which led to bloodshed. These are families fighting one another, brother to brother or cousin and cousin, most viciously! I'm sayin', there were children present both times and the amount of blood spilled in both cases was enough to make me wanna wrench my guts clean of whatever was in ‘em at the time. These Latin niggaz was tryin' to Mike Tyson they own brother who punched through a plane of glass and grabbed a long shard struggling with his hermano throughout the house and down a long flight of stairs into the backyard. Blood was everywhere and the one brother decided to throw his autre hermano's earlobe somewhere in the grass. Shit was sickening to witness everyone yelling and struggling frantically, so I took the crying kids next door for some ice cream. One brother went to jail and the other went to the hospital. The following night across the street, a similar scenario took place between two cousins, again Latino Negritos goin' toe-to-toe. Without the ears getting bitten, one cousin attacked the other with a lead pipe and tried to stab him in the heart through his back and side of his rib cage. Can you say attempted murder? The question remains is whether it's the cage with Real killers for cousin or the Psyche Ward with the Looney Toons where he can get some medication and a literal rest. 5150 is the Penal Code for the crazy-house in L.A.County Jail So having dealt with all of that before Saturday even came, I gotta say I had a GREAT weekend. I ain't mad at nobody. But I'm still a Digi-Thug if there ever was one.

Pleaze Buh' Leave It!

Wednesday: June 27th, 2001
Everyday Struggle

It's a trip to sit here and actually write something about my life. See there are so many things to address at any given point in time that it's hard to narrow the things down that I wish to express. Let's see, there's the lack of ads in the mag no matter what I do. There's that little pest named Jayson who was giving us shit. There's our new Video format that we don't know what to do with. There's a mountain of bills that I have to climb. And there's no ads in the mag. I guess that would be the most frustrating part of doing this. FUCK!!!

I'm tired of complaining about it though. I'ma just start goin' off on labels and letting them feel the shit they put me & everybody else through. If they don't support me one way, I'll be damned if they don't support me by force. I'ma get mine regardless or I'ma get outta this bizz. Bottom line is Niggaz ain't askin' for shit. We takin' it. And with that attitude I'm out like Buster Douglass.

Not a Threat
But a Promise

Monday: June 4th, 2001
Dirty Politics

It's the day before Los Angeles elects a new Mayor. The choices are between James Hahn and Antonio Villariagosa. The difference in the candidates is slight- both are Liberal Democrats and both have years of experience as public servants. But it's amazing how one candidate will stoop to such a low level of negative advertising against the other to incite fear in the hearts of the city's denizens. It can be downright confusing when looking at the ads coming out the day before we all vote. My mind was already made up before these commercials, but imagine those undecided voters and how this will affect their decision-making process come tomorrow morning.

I think that most people are concerned with a number of issues, primarily what will become of our Police Department. This is nothing new. Another very important factor in the election is the fate of the L.A Unified School District. And most important are how this new Mayor will get along with City Council and the selection of numerous Commissioners to oversee how Civic dollars are spent. All these things are very important to our future as the Nation's second-largest city in the nation's wealthiest state. Consider that. Now when a candidate has to resort to blatant ads using crack cocaine, gangs, and soft-on-crime allegations to villify your opponent, that's downright slimy. In this case it's borderline racist. The news broke it down last night. Los Angeles is 46% Latino, 30% white, 11% Black, and 10% Asian. You do the math. Is fear the best way to go for the white candidate? Are a majority of Latino voters gonna put the Mexican-American in office. Where do the true Minority folk, in this case Black & Asian voters stand. Should we even play Politics by Race. What about the haves and have-nots. You know, Class and money? How about the Youth? They have a very powerful voice hat rarely gets tapped unless you're Bill Clinton on Mtv.

I for one will cast my vote. This city needs a change. I hope others at least vote who didn't vote before this. Did you know that more people DO NOT vote that CAN vote than those that actually do? This is America people. Get up off your ass and stop complaining. Do something!

If you don't know, now you know...

Sunday: May 20th, 2001
Cookin' Up Sum Mahvaluss...

Last weekend My family went out for Mother's Day. My Grandmother made a comment about how proud she is that I'm doing my thing with the Magazine even though she thinks the print is too small to read.The funny thing is that when she gives my stuff to her friends, she always makes sure to tell them afterwards that she wasn't responsible for the way I write and compose the articles. That's a cute way of disclaiming Ebonics as some new school shit that "Educated" people frown upon. But at the same time her friends shower praise upon her for having a grandson that is a Publisher whether they understand the "fine print" or not. Now put it on a videotape and the images take on a whole new meaning that can be interpreted by all at their own discretion. As the Animal would say, "Video is the final frontier in a digi-world. "What we're about to embark upon is too ghetto for television and too real to be captured in a magazine. And for what we have and what we can get, it looks to be the completion of the triangle: a magazine, a supplemental website, and a series of videos.

But back to Grandma. At one point during our meal, she grabbed the lapels of her coat and proceeded to flash the diamonds on her fingers a la Liberace. All my sisters and I could do was laugh and ask ourselves what did Grandma know about poppin' collars & bling-bling. Then I thought to myself that this is what these kids today have inherently learned from generations before them. Shit is deep considering the magnitude of today's youth driven, music oriented Kulture called Hip Hop. Me? I'm just watching it all go by and recording what I can; putting it all in some type of way to communicate to whoever wants to see it in those various common forms. And as for Grandma, she wants me to start up a restaurant like the one we went to in Manhattan Beach.

What can I say? I'm trying to keep my head up in light of the last few entries. It ain't all bad, but it ain't all good. I'll suffice it to say it's relative. At least that and the NBA Playoffs can put a smile on my face. How can I be sad when there's two Game 7's on back-to-back? Allen Iverson vs. Vince Carter? How can you NOT cheer for both?

Dr Jekyll & Mr Hyde

Tuesday: May 01, 2001
Something To Give

Life has no guarantees. But life can have meaning. Death is for certain and no one really knows what's on the other side. We might have an idea, but who really knows? Who truly can say? I do know that life can bring happiness. But what would happiness be without sufferance? I think everyone wants to be happy because life in and of itself is a struggle. Our very days are numbered. No one has ever escaped. Is life what you make it? Or is it something other people would like to own? We all live in a cell. It's called the human body. Everyone is in their own prison called the brain. Or is that prism? Do we really think alike or is that part of the training? What do you think? Does it matter what I think? What do we think we can agree to disagree on? And vise versa? Who cares?

I just know I have something to give. Kronick is the world's greatest FREE 'Zine. Did you get your copy of the latest ish?

Mister Ha-Ha!

Monday: April 16th, 2001
Still In Business?

Finally after almost six months a fucking issue hits the streets. We've got Snoop, Capone-N-Noreaga, Black Eyed Peas, Badazz, Ludacris, Talib Kweli and Baby Cham speaking on what they speak on. I'm glad it's out! Now I can get on with the next one! It's still free so get 'em while they last. I really don't wish to say why this issue took so long but I will say that we got some new equipment on deck to speed thangs up in terms of processing the mag more efficiently. And look forward to all these updates on the webpage. I gotta give shouts out to all the heads who leave messages posted up on our guestbook. A lot of these kids peep Game from places the magazine may have never seen the light of day, but they're down for whatever. Can you say guerilla distribution? And I can't forget all those unnamed heads who've helped me keep my head up during these somewhat trying times. The magazine itself is undergoing a transformation of sorts and it's not easy butting heads with individuals on staff who get ahead of themselves when we're already behind.

The other interesting fact of life is the diversification of Hip Hop as a product of mass consumption. This has made it such that few and far between, niche magazines are being erased the further the Kulture becomes mainstream. And this affects all who once relied on Hip Hop as their sole means of survival. If people don't diversify and expand with this movement, they simply get left behind and blown away like specks of dust. That's a lot to think about. And sometimes it's hard to be humble when you're hungry.

Who Am I?

Sunday: February 11th, 2001
Clearing The Cobwebs

Someone recently left a message on the Guestbook asking where the Daily Dread has been. More like Weakly or less than Mumphlee? To tell the truth, I haven't been as inspired as of late due to other things going on around me. See, I'm a lot older than when I started out 10 years ago. But I never saw this as a career that it became until actually looking back in reflection. I've learned the hard way what the word "perseverence" means and likewise what it can bring. Also the article in XXL recently made me rethink the whole perspective of their intentions. Funny how they tried to make it seem like Stress & Kronick were the last of a dying breed. To them, both of us were on our deathbeds waiting to keel over from the life-support in our arms. All that article did was bring more business my way in the form of ad dollars. And I thank the boys over at Double X for the extra publicity which never hurts. "Tit for tat, butter for fat; you kill my dog, I'ma slay your cat!" -Flavor Flav

As I was saying, there's been a lot on my mind that has made me NOT want to give up so much so soon. Something that's really been on my noodle is this whole website. There's a ton of great stuff we have in store for you and I guess I'm a little impatient when it comes to updating this muggafrigga. I can't reveal just yet, but I will say that the boys in the back room over here have some mah'valous shit in the pot. You can't smell it, but you'll soon see it.

What else? They're fixin to shut down Napster Y'all. What do you think of that? Personally, I've never used it. I don't know what an MP3 is and I still do reviews off a detachable Boom-Box. What?? Some other shit that's weighed heavy on my domepiece is the fact that my son isn't doing too well in school. Which leads me to believe that I need to pay more attention to him in his close to teenage development. Quality time is no joke and neither is enforcing a set of standards. So no I haven't been devoted to spilling my guts to you all every day. Maybe not for a week or two for different reasons. That doesn't mean I don't check the site daily to see if any of you left messages. One of you may inspire me to keep hope alive like Jesse Jackson seems to know how to do with the help of Viagra. Or is he just a virile older Cat? I don't know...

In any event somebody, anybody, everybody scream!! Put it like this, if everybody that read this left something in the guestbook, I might have some shit to talk about. Sort of like the stripper mentality. Which is, "If every person at the club left a dollar for every girl that went on the catwalk, it would be worth it for every girl at the end of the night". All I'm asking for is a thought...

Disinterested Dread

Tuesday: January 30th, 2001
I Confess

I ain't really been too motivated to come on here an post up like a stamp like it's all gravy. I've been more interested in treating myself to all that was put on the back burner. So I Beyonce'd down to New Orleans and kicked back with Wifey, for a spell. I also trekked up to the Oaktown for a sec with my Sprout, Moziah. I can't front like I've been all about the business because it's traditionally slow right through here.

On another note, I've recently been included amongst the dead in the current issue of Double XL Magazine. It's quite funny to see their expose' on what used to be Hip Hop Magazines of yesteryore and what all those individuals who made them up are doing now. It reads like a bad Hip Hop Journalistic episode of VH1's Behind The Music. As the old saying goes, "Any publicity is good publicity", and in this case I can't fault that Guy over At Double XL (you know who Loves you, Baby!) for giving his all in the face of opposition. Hats off to ‘em, but guess what? Ive got a new issue after this current Eminem Cover dissing Double XL. It's got Snoop on the Cover. After that, we've got another issue with KRS-One on the Cover. And so on, and so on. I WANT people to go out and BUY the current issue of Double XL Magazine and READ what they have to say about all the Old School Hip Hop Mags and see for themselves who is the Sole Survivor. In Fact, I'm gonna have my Webmaster link everyone that comes to our site directly to that article. How's that for reciprocation?

Publisher turned Publicist

Blaqqie DamnU