The Grammys always reminds me of the quasi-utopia the music industry portrays. With the gusto and aplomb the musicians and artists convey, one might think there’s absolutely nothing wrong with this billion dollar industry. Numbers get flung around with showcases o...

“So, what you’re saying is that you don’t think it’s right that Benzino and the Source are calling Eminem Elvis?” “No, it’s like they’re using the pro-Black agenda superficially to garner the respect of the hip-hop communi...

Usually, my iPod tells me everything I need to know. When I first started teaching, my iPod would serenade me with Duran Duran’s “Ordinary World” while I napped from Dyckman St. to West 4th St., a 30-minute train ride on the A. If I spent the whole nig...

A few notes: This weather’s been so absurd lately, hasn’t it? I’ve bought more umbrellas in the past month than I’ve had to my entire life. It’s a rather heated meeting between fire and rain … Speaking of which, I know everyone wants ...

Recently, Vibe Magazine closed its doors, at least in print form. For those who never ventured into black publication, Vibe Magazine was a Black-based magazine started by Quincy Jones last decade. The ostensible vision of the pub was to highlight Black culture, but with...

Someone asked me recently if I talked to my kids about Michael Jackson and the impact he had on me and people of my generation. I told the person, “No, we had things to do. I hadn’t seen them very much over the last week, so I just wanted that time to let th...

Dear Michael Jackson, First, let me say that I’m deeply saddened by your death. Your passing ranks up there in the moments where people had to remember where they were standing when they heard the news. On a day when a fellow 70′s-80′s icon in Farrah F...

When your voice finds you, it doesn’t matter how you express it: your signature’s all over it. I write this because, after seeing The Soloist, a movie about a Los Angeles-based writer who finds a homeless cellist / prodigy and a must-watch for any writer I k...

Dead and Alive: Why Biggie Deserves to Still Be In Your Top Five I proffer 5 reasons why Biggie should be in everyone’s top 5 greatest MCs, dead or alive. Holla back. Technorati Tags: blogcritics, music...

I wrote this sometime in October 2008, but for whatever reason, people who I sent this to never actually published it. Some of the stuff I wrote in the original blog I’ve edited to fit my more informed views now, but the message remains the same. Please read and d...