SPIRITUAL JOURNALISM: THE HUNGER FOR TRUTH

Thus its latter 2009. Seeing the strides and movements of industry artists throughout the last two years shows, as i noted before a great number of veterans taking more responsibility for their work. And in general perserving the arts themselves from the greed of capitalism, keeping the essense of music. We jump off the week with insight into the lives of some of these very artists. Many during the last several years exposed many truths, communicated the meaning and virtue of life, and sought their own spiritual groundation. Peep some examples..finally we showcase wu-tang's own rza discussing his transitions and views.



KRSONE

Gospel of Hip Hop comments
In an interview with AllHipHop about his book "The Gospel of Hip Hop", KRS-One said:

"I’m suggesting that in 100 years, this book will be a new religion on the earth... I think I have the authority to approach God directly, I don’t have to go through any religion [or] train of thought. I can approach God directly myself and so I wrote a book called The Gospel of Hip Hop to free from all this nonsense garbage right now. I respect the Christianity, the Islam, the Judaism but their time is up. ...In a hundred years, everything that I’m saying to you will be common knowledge and people will be like, 'Why did he have to explain this? Wasn’t it obvious?'"[9]

These comments have been referred to by numerous media outlets[10][11][12] such as the AV Club who comment that "KRS-One writes 600-page hip-hop bible; blueprint for rap religion"[13] and "KRS-One has never been afraid to court controversy and provoke strong reactions. Now the Boogie Down Productions legend has topped himself by writing The Gospel of Hip Hop: The First Instrument, a mammoth treatise on the spirituality of hip-hop he hopes will some day become a sacred text of a new hip-hop religion"[


LOON
Amir Junaid Muuhadith (born Chauncey Lamont Hawkins, June 20, 1975 in Harlem, New York) better known by his stage name Loon, is an African-American rapper formerly part of P. Diddy's Bad Boy Records, where he released his self-titled debut album, Loon. He has also made many guest appearances on songs of the R&B and hip hop genres. In 2004, Loon left Bad Boy to start his own label, Boss Up Entertainment. Loon started his music career as a member of Mase's rap collective Harlem World (group). Along with his music Loon has also been featured in two movies directed by Damon Dash, State Property 2 and Death of a Dynasty. Loon is a convert to Islam.

Born in a Christian family, Chauncey Lamont Hawkins changed his name to Amir Junaid Muhadith after converting to Islam. He recently traveled to Mecca, Saudi Arabia, the holiest and most sacred site of the Islamic religion, to perform Umrah. He has since quit rapping and now is focusing on seeking knowledge and giving Da'wa

The RZA on TS
by yardie4lifever2

THE RZA ON HIS NEW BOOK THE TAO OF WU.

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UNTOLD STORY, HIDDEN CRIME: BLACK WALL STREET

One of the lost cities of america..and tragic stories swept under the rug of time.
The plight of african americans in this country is self explanitory. If you never heard of the greenwood tragedy..take the time to peep. They say the point of history is for it not to repeat itself. Tonights blog is dedicated the scars and struggles of any oppressed peoples. Greenwood.. you not forgotten...


One of the nation's worst acts of racial violence—the Tulsa Race Riot—occurred there on June 1, 1921, when 35 square blocks of homes and businesses were torched by mobs of angry whites.

The riot began because of an alleged assault of a white woman, Sarah Page, by an African American man, Dick Rowland. This incident produced even more hatred between the whites and the blacks even though there was no proof of the assault. The case was simply a white woman’s word against a black man’s word. The Tulsa Tribune got word of the incident and published the story in the paper on May 31, 1921. Shortly after the newspaper article surfaced, there was news that a white lynch mob was going to take matters into its own hands and kill Dick Rowland. [5]

African American men began to arm themselves and join forces in order to protect Dick Rowland; however, this action prompted white men to arm themselves and confront the group of African American men. There was an argument in which a white man tried to take a gun from a black man, and the gun fired a bullet up into the sky. This incident promoted many others to fire their guns, and the violence erupted on the evening of May 31, 1921. Whites flooded into the Greenwood district and destroyed the businesses and homes of African American residents. No one was exempt to the violence of the white mobs; men, women, and even children were killed by the mobs.

Troops were deployed on the afternoon of June 1st, but by that time there was not much left of the once thriving Greenwood district. Over 600 successful businesses were lost. Among these were 21 churches, 21 restaurants, 30 grocery stores and two movie theaters, plus a hospital, a bank, a post office, libraries, schools, law offices, a half-dozen private airplanes and even a bus system.[7] Property damage totaled $1.5 million (1921).[7] Although the official death toll claimed that 26 blacks and 13 whites died during the fighting, most estimates are considerably higher. At the time of the riot, the American Red Cross listed 8,624 persons in need of assistance, in excess of 1,000 homes and businesses destroyed, and the delivery of several stillborn -

sources wikipedia







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N.Y UNIVERSAL: THE COLLEGE MUSIC JOURNAL

College Music Journal, commonly known as CMJ, is a music events/publishing company most famous for its annual festival in New York City, the CMJ Music Marathon, as well as a weekly magazine of and for the music industry and college radio stations in the United States and Canada. It publishes top 30 lists sent by stations which subscribe at a cost of a few hundred dollars a year. It is also sent to record companies and their public relations and publicity representatives as well as record stores. CMJ also publishes CMJ New Music Monthly, a magazine with interviews, reviews, and special features.
SOURCES-WIKIPEDIA

Oct. 20- the 24 NYC resumed its annual college music marathon. As i heard this year was a success, with artists from all over showcasing their work. Both mainstream industry and underground. If you didnt make it peep some of the acts showcased.












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FERTILE CRESENT: NORTHEAST BRONX N.Y

THIS EXCLUSIVE BLOGSPOT FEATURE IS DEDICATED TO THE ARTISTS AND INDIVIDUALS/COLLECTIVES OUT OF THIS PARTICULAR SECTION OF N.Y.C.-
PEEP THE FORCES IMPACTING THE WORLD, AND INDUSTRY FROM MY HOMETOWN:

"THE FERTILE CRESCENT".

PREQUEL: THE PRODIGY-CHI-ALI GRIFFITH



"The Fabulous Chi-Ali" full-length dropped spring 1992, and was notable for two reasons: first, it would be the only LP Chi-Ali would ever release, and secondly, it marked the debut of the Beatnuts as a dominant production force. The highlights of "The Fabulous" are simple: the Beatnuts provide a hot beat, and Chi-Ali spits some hilariously high-pitched lyrics. Check out "Maniac Psycho" where Chi is a "14 year old lord on a skateboard/strangling suckers with mic chords" or the bordering-on-illegal ode to preteen sex on "In My Room." In fact, the Beatnuts don't drop a subpar track on here; from the slow thump of "Check My Record" to the spacey funk of "Roadrunner," the beats make Chi's squeaky lyrics tolerable

Like many groups, Chi was never able to release a follow-up LP. The rap world moved on, and people weren't checking for Chi-Ali's style anymore. Unfortunately, Chi's personal fortunes followed his rap career. After a series of dead-end jobs, Chi-Ali is accused of murdering a man in the Bronx in a dispute over $300 on February 14th, 2000.

It's hard to believe Chi-Ali, dancing happily in his videos, would end up a murderer. But before he joined Steady B as the butt of many jokes, Chi dropped a solid album, gained the adoration of thousands of preteen girls, and helped put the Beatnuts on. Ultimately, the latter was his greatest contribution to hip-hop.

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I. SEAN NELSON


Nelson was born in the Co-Op City section of Bronx, New York, of Jamaican/St. Thomian descent.[citation needed] He began his acting career at age 10 when he landed a role in an off-Broadway play Hey Little Walter. Sean Nelson turned 13 shortly before beginning principal photography on his debut film, writer-director Boaz Yakin's "Fresh" (1994). Prior to that, he had made his TV debut in a 1992 episode of the NBC series Here and Now and appeared off-Broadway in a production of "Hey Little Walter" at Playwrights Horizons, but neither of these efforts presaged the impressive performance to come in "Fresh". Though he had little dialogue as the savvy Brooklyn street kid who works after school as a drug runner, Nelson appeared in practically every scene, garnering rave notices for his harrowing portrait of an incredibly resourceful, tragically deprived child who applies the rules of chess to real life. A blank slate most of the time, Fresh finally cracks after enacting retribution against the system destroying the lives of those he loves. This haunting last image of lost innocence, shattered by the carnage he has precipitated, is what stayed with audiences, serving notice that this was an actor to watch.
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II. BIG TIGGER



Morgan grew up in Co-op City and played basketball at the Bellamy Loop courts in section 4. He started out working as a DJ at the radio station WERQ, 92Q in Baltimore, Maryland, but his road to success began a few years earlier. While attending the University of Maryland, College Park, he interned at Washington D.C. radio station WPGC 95.5 FM. At WPGC, Morgan worked alongside popular host Albie Dee and was promptly recognized for his ambition and charisma. His college internship evolved into a flourishing career. Soon Morgan, with his innovative freestyles, gained popularity on night radio. When the Bronx native returned to New York City in 2001, he departed D.C. as the highest rated, six-year undefeated nighttime radio champion.[1]

He entered the television scene on voiceovers for BET in 1996, while still working the radio circuit. Within a year, fans were watching him on-camera, on Rap City's "Hip Hop News," and he advanced to become the co-host of Rap City in its tenth season, alongside Big Lez and Joe Clair. BET then changed the shows format, and Morgan became the lone emcee. He hosted the show from 1999–2005, before being replaced by Mad Linx.

Morgan hosted the BET shows 106 & Park until July 7, 2006 and BET Style until its final episode on July 6, 2006. Morgan also hosted numerous episodes of BET: Uncut. He also began rapping in 2003, when he was featured on R. Kelly's song "Snake". He is featured on a hidden track on Ginuwine's album The Senior. Additionally, every weekend, Morgan hosts Live In Tha Den with Big Tigger, a syndicated radio show. He replaced Star and Buc Wild with a temporary morning show, Live With Tigger with Egypt & Donnell Rawlings. On his show Live In the Den, hip hop stars such as Jay-Z have made guest appearances.
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III. JUS' ROLLE


Born and raised in Eastchester Projects, in the birth place of Hip-Hop, The Bronx, New York, Jus Rolle (Ro-Lay) established his love for music at the early age of seven when he first began developing his style of rhyme and performance on and off the streets. He has nurtured his style into a diverse, dynamic and unique sound that enabled him to perform in local neighborhood shows in and around the Bronx, to shows in Albany, DC, Atlanta, Miami, Virginia and LA. Jus has graced the stages of high school auditoriums to concert halls and arenas, which led him to performing in various shows with major artists across the country. Jus’ style has been widely recognized by many experienced individuals in the music industry including producers such as Soul Diggaz, who have produced records for Beyonce, Mary J. Blige and Missy Elliot. Charlemagne with production for Jay-Z, Talib Kweli and the Notorious B.I.G., as well as Brandon Howard, who has credited tracks for Gerald Levert, Ney- Yo, Lupe Fiasco and Marques Houston. Look up the true definition of the word Grind, and you will see Jus Rolle’s picture all over it. He is one of the hardest working unsigned artist with the passion to rise to the top of his career, and that was proven when Ralph McDaniels of Video Music Box and Hot 97 named Jus Rolle as the Grind Artists of the Month.


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V. CLAP COGNAC/TEAM PAPER $OLDIERS


One of N.E bronx's leading artist's, clap's resume has extended tremendously. He has hit stages throughout the tri-state area and abroad. His witty and sharp delivery remain street conscious, and socially conscious of the world around him. He still hold to spiritual and economic principle as he navigate through the dog eat dog music industry. One of the greatest minds of northeast bx..fth city, welcome to the world of clap cognac.

TEAM PAPER $OLDIERS LLC




A collective of artists/producers N.E bronx(specifically sec 5 co-op city)
consisting of clap cognac,quickdraw,brigante,JK,teflon the X factor, silent murder,
killamessiah(noted producer of lloyd banks "the raw") krysiz kahn and a host of other associates, and conglamorates as Ress Connected, silent rounds(new rochelle) Angreemen Ent., Dj superstar J, and Dj Fiyaa. With the collectives based in streets genre, these brothers put together entrepenual visions, along with creative instinct
to accomplish their goals. Overstanding the harsh realities of urban life, allow paper $oilders to tell the story through the industry to the world.



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VI. ZION ANTONI


Hailing from N.E bronx, via washington heights Aritist/freelance writer/musician/producer Zion antoni honed his crafts from an early age. Coming from a african-american/costa-rican household, He was exposed to many different genre's of music. Living off the urban-experience from childhood to adulthood, aquiring knowlegde in adverse times, staying true to his spiritual and concrete roots, also hailing from the lccg family which includes paper $oldiers and noted afiliates, he discoverd through many harsh trials and tribulations his purpose was to communicate a spiritually conscious world view to the masses..having its roots in urban life. Through media, writing, non-profit works, activism such as mentoring at-risk youth, and music, he seeks to communicate a better consciousnes to the people in perilous times to preserve life. Often through the crucibles of his own life. He is often implementing and addressing urban issues, at work in non-profit movements, and communicating a spiritually conscious world view on an international circuit, to all walks of life.




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VII.JAYONEZ/MONEYSHOTFILMS



A prolific film/music production company ran by engineer/artist/film director Jayonez, has been expanding borders throught N.Y.C and abroad. Working with artists both mainstream and underground, the film company has been praised and noted for its professional quality and prolific video editing production. Check the exclusives and the high quality of CEO jayonez work.




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VIII. BRONXRAP.COM/HOODHOLLYWOOD.COM




One of the leading blogspots on the net..first debut as Bronxrap.com, took the internet by storm with many hits, active members, and developing as an internet social site. Now with revisions they are Hoodhollywood.com, run by "L" and Dj voltron, with its foundations in "fifth city" NY- section 5 co-op city. Catch all the news, videos and latest industry and community information.

WWW.HOODHOLLYWOOD.COM





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MINORITY GENOCIDE:REALITY VS. ENTERTAINMENT

Another week in october, jumpin' off this week with a term i call "minority genocide". In recent years in working in my career, in my studies i discoverd that in the music industry, ranging from all genres, but notably in hiphop/rap, that the highest production/distribution bred, and reflected one thing...DEMISE. In living in philadelphia after seeing countless youth die, and even good friends, i found poor class to middle, even rich developed a way of life the killed three ways..through the toungue, drugs, and the sword. Not only in urban social structures, but any society if you take away spiritual and moral fiber, the principle is your gonna have a decaying people.. altogether. The very vices and lack of standard will strip a society down to savage...clean. Granted there is entertainment.. but not everybody know the difference, they say art imitate life, but not everybody is ready for the two to run too close together. For real. Know yourself, know your environment, and the role the media, industry, and entertainment plays in relation to you. Food for thoughtz..peep a dose of reality from 94'...-




<Robert "Yummy" Sandifer (March 12, 1983 – September 1, 1994) garnered national attention in September 1994 after his murder by fellow gang members. He appeared on the cover of Time Magazine in September 1994.[1]

Nicknamed Yummy because of his love of junk food, Sandifer was a young member of the Chicago street gang the Black Disciples. After committing murder, arson and armed robbery, he was executed by fellow gang members who feared he could be turned snitch. Coverage of Sandifer's death and retrospectives on his short, violent life were widely published in the American media, and Sandifer became a symbol of the gang problem in American inner cities, the failure of social safety netting, and the shortcomings of the juvenile justice system. -SOURCES WIKIPEDIA

The story of "yummy" sandifer, although sevaral years published nationwide, im sure had an effect on the generation of that time. And possibly saved many from destruction. Thus its 2009, another generation in american inner cities. This the time of harvest, and seedtime, planting seeds to perserve a people, and posterities. Yummy's life is still relevant today, perfect timing to blog this throwback, in the words of my dude k.mercer, lets not forget...

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Below is a 2 part interview with artist "Maino", discussing his own life, industry exploitation, and realites behind the glamour. Do your math, everythin' aint always what it seem, although riches is the goal in a capitalistic society, money and fame dont always equal happiness..salute maino for speakin the real...


PART.I

PART.II


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FEATURE ESSAY-RITES OF PASSAGE:PROPHETIC SURVIVAL

PART.I-THE INTRO

In this essay i coined the term "prophetic survival", the overall move of a people, a self-actualization to overcome obstacle's to move toward a goal, or greater purpose.
In the ways, concepts and philosophies of the world, especially in a western world view, most overtly, or discreetly use the likes of greed, selfish ambitions, to pillage their way to the top, especially in a capatilistic society. From poor class to middle to rich, from spiritual oppressions to political, countless ills plague a society. To where one must reach to find his/herself, and reach even harder to find their purpose in this lifetime. In the case of self realization and pursuing goals i note some figures we all know. 1st is d-blocks jadakiss(jason phillips).


When asked asked about his hometown yonkers n.y he replied " its like a black cloud over there" he said in a spring 2009 interview. There's alot of love, but there also is alot of hate. You gotta get out of your hood, thats with anybody, mary j blige did it..you gotta go do your thing and then come back."
Jada speaks in reference to though people applaud his accomplishments, in pursuing his career he had to leave due to those that were jealous, and carried hatred.. that may have killed him. In this point survival meant knowing who is who among him, staying aware of the challenges that may have held him back.
Another the honorable Robert Nesta Marley O.M. In an 1977 interview, when asked about surviving the trenchtown settlement of kingston jamaica, he replied" well surviving was easy..the only thin you hafe' wacth fa is de police." Dey come and say whey ya from? .. you say trenchtown! ... ya gone". I also note the fact the marley's father was white, which was very unpopular in his day. Which caused him, in spite of his humble nature tranform to "lion" or his nickname "tuff gong" to survive the taunts and attacks of being racially mixed.


Below is an in depth interview of the late tupac shakur, which he covers everything in his life from the system, jail, and testament to his own prophetic survival, Through gang violence, the industry, and politics, after viewing his interview peep part 2 to the P.S essay, Divine intuition.

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PART.II DIVINE INTUITION

One example of prophetic survival for a people, was the civil rights movement of the sixties. During this time of segregation and political oppression for blacks in the south, leaders came forth, strengthening all points for the people to survive, and implementing change in so that future generations wont have to go through the same oppressions and conflict. Kwame ture and bobby seals had the black panther socialist political party which focused on protecting their people from political direct violence from the government. Martin luther king jr, medgar evers and malcolm focused on the spiritual aspect of it..the means of survival was to iradicate the social ills of the people, create more unity, improve the consciousness of the people and establish a better way of life. The ultimate roots of prophetic survival is always spiritual. In my own experience, i found its keeping a close ear to God, being in touch with your own spirit, and listening to one of man's greatest gifts, the conscience. I had to do it to survive the social ills of city life, from my youth till now, to survive the violence, drugs and strifes that many know and live with. This divine intuition, for me was even practised in the realm of religons, from me not only studying the nature of religon, but not clinging to the instutitions and social structures of religon, being as though i have experienced my own share of direct wounds. Instead i lock in to the spirit of God for guidance, not nessecarily the hearts of men. In our grassroots journalism/activism group, sha thomas, author and speaker stated "if i didnt listen to God coming this far, and listened to man i would have been in worse situations". I go back to the examples of Marley and tupac. There was an attempt on marleys life in 1976 due to political warfare that raged in this time. A perfect example of divine intuition, he spoke on the incident" I went home about t'ree o'clock in the mornin' to get some sleep at a place called putney..and at this time i saw a vision.. and i vision i was in barrage a gunshot, but some'ting in de vision say stand up..don run..and i see mi mother get hit..but i neva get hit". Nights later marley experienced the same situation, and he did jus that.. stood still while the gunmen fired in his house. The end result was marley suffered a graze, and his wife rita marley was hit near the skull area. They both survived the shooting. As tupac explained in the above interview, he seen, and spoke most of the things he seen come to pass. Even his own demise. Being as though he did see his death.. which he remarkably detailed in description, maybe he could have avoided it, maybe he was ready to go..only God know.




Nonetheless prophetic survival is an reality, whether practised on a personal or a grand scale. I hope more understanding is gained from this, you may have seen these movements in your very own life. If you have, keep in mind the roots of prophetic survival is spiritual, and its always towards a greater purpose.-

Zion Antoni

POST SCRIPTZ-
WORDS FROM SOME OF HIPHOP'S GIANTS...

KRS One & Talib Kweli (in studio) from gregthedude on Vimeo.

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THE FACE OF UNITY: OVERSTANDING PEACE OVER CONFUSION

The following video clip is from a governer's island gathering, the "this is 50.com festival". Many names in the industry came out to support and also perform. Some ranging from members of dipset, dblock, red cafe, cory guns and more. I highlight the principle of unity in this feature blast, due to the nature and competition, specifically in the music industry. This was 1st featured on the actual site, This is 50.com, which is one of the leading blogspots on the net. The entire footage shows some feuds that raged no more than 4 to 5 years ago, and some as early as several months ago. To see groups as dipset and g-unit unite,as well as d-block and brooklyn's papoose, held more weight than most could think. In spite of their own grinds and careers, being as though they are in the spotlight, the level of influence they have is still effective. The fact that these brothers came together, show the industry and tainted media the streets can do the same.. and more.

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The conflict between Jay-Z and Nas is one of the more publicized feuds in recent years.[3] Initially, the relationship between the two rappers was respectful with Jay-Z giving a shoutout to Nas on all his albums.[4] After the death of The Notorious B.I.G., the position of most popular New York rapper seemed to become vacant and fans were eager to see who would fill that role.[3]

In 1996, while recording his debut album Reasonable Doubt, Jay-Z's producer Ski used a vocal sample from Nas' "The World Is Yours" as the chorus to his song "Dead Presidents". Neither party had asked Nas' permission which upset him. Jay-Z had invited Nas to re-rap the line and he had agreed but never showed up to record the line. After several no-shows, their relationship began to sour and the incident is seen as the beginning of the quarrel between them. The dispute was intensified when Nas assembled The Firm in 1996 with AZ, Foxy Brown and Cormega (later Nature). Jay-Z wanted to release their debut album on his label, Roc-A-Fella Records, but the group decided to sign with Aftermath without telling Jay-Z or Damon Dash, who described the situation in an interview with MTV News:

“ "Nas and AZ was supposed to be on "Bring It On" they kept not showing up. That's when we wanted to put out the Firm. They didn't show up. We was meeting and they was saying, "Yeah", but they wasn't showing up. We would be waiting and we would be getting offended." ”
—Damon Dash, MTV News[5]


Jay-Z continued to show his respect to Nas in 1997 by referencing him on his song "Where I'm From"[3]. Nas responded to Jay-Z on his track "We Will Survive" in 1999 which criticizes several rappers, including Jay-Z, who claimed to be "New York's King" following Notorious B.I.G.'s death. This was seen as disrespectful by Jay-Z and was the spark that kicked off the feud.

SOURCES-WIKIPEDIA



06' THROWBACK..WE STILL CAN LEARN FROM MOMENTS IN TIME..

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