• About
  • Activism/Initiatives
  • Contact Us
  • Mission Statement

~ A Blog of the African Diaspora

Category Archives: Rap

sat’day riddymz

20 Saturday Apr 2013

Posted by asabagna in AfroSpear, AfroSphere, Common, hip hop music, Jay-Z, Rap, sat'day riddymz

≈ Leave a comment

the Lupe Fiasco fiasco

30 Thursday Jun 2011

Posted by asabagna in AfroSpear, AfroSphere, Barack Obama, hip hop music, Lupe Fiasco, News, Politics, Rap, Terrorism, U.S. Politics

≈ 9 Comments

“My fight against terrorism, to me, the biggest terrorist is Obama in the United States of America. I’m trying to fight the terrorism that’s actually causing the other forms of terrorism. You know, the root cause of terrorism is the stuff the U.S. government allows to happen. The foreign policies that we have in place in different countries that inspire people to become terrorists.”

A few weeks ago I heard some background chatter in the media about a rapper named Lupe Fiasco, who apparently made the above statement. I didn’t think too much about it at the time. The brother was just stating the obvious as far as I was concerned… plus Black people in America, no matter how enlightened they are or are becoming about the “Obama Bamboozle”… most will still vote for him in 2012. The decades of  conditioning is too deep and set. He’s got black skin and he’s a Democrat, ergo…

Then I heard more background chatter that FOXNews commentator and host Bill O’Reilly invited Lupe on his show and challenged him on his above remarks. I read some commentaries afterwards from those who were surprised that a conservative Republican like O’Reilly would come to the defense of Obama. It didn’t surprise me at all… Obama is their “nigga”, both literally and figuratively. He represents the third term of George Bush. I find it ironic that during the 2008 Presidential Campaign, he referred to Hilary Clinton as “Bush-light”, while he in fact has become Bush III.

Still I paid little attention to the supposed con-troversy until I read this commentary at Black Agenda Report: “Hip-Hop and The Weakness of Liberalism”.

“Lupe’s remarks only seem controversial or rare because liberals and the Obamatons have made radical critique seem irresponsible or nonexistent.”

I must admit that Hip-Hop has held no real interest for me in years, but according to this article, Lupe is one of a new breed of “conscious” rappers, so he peaked my interest. I went to Youtube and watched a few of his videos, as well as read a number of his interviews and articles about him.

“I don’t vote. I don’t get involved in the political process… Cause it’s meaningless to be honest”

“Even if you agree with it, you should criticize power.”

I downloaded his lastest CD, LASERS and it has made its way into my latest regular listening rotation (along with Jill Scott’s The Light of the Sun and Ziggy Marley’s Wild and Free). I love the raw energy and edge of his music. His lyrical style is clever and deep.

“I’ma part of the problem, my problem is I’m peaceful… And I believe in the people.”

The more I read about him and listen to his music, the more I understand why his record company postponed the release of his latest CD for a couple years. He doesn’t promote the glorifying of murder… especially of other Black men, the disrespecting and demonizing of Black women, the juvenile bragging about stereotypical Black male sexual prowess nor the worshipping of materialism. And of-course, he sees Obama the media creation, for who he really is and speaks to that truth.

sat’day riddymz

18 Saturday Sep 2010

Posted by asabagna in 2Pac, AfroSpear, AfroSphere, Rap, sat'day riddymz, YouTube

≈ 3 Comments

My love for 2Pac

13 Monday Sep 2010

Posted by asabagna in 2Pac, AfroSpear, AfroSphere, Black History, Rap

≈ 5 Comments

I have mad love for 2Pac. I refer to it as “mad” because it’s a love that you know you shouldn’t have for someone (or something) but you can’t help it. You just do.

I didn’t realize today was the 14th anniversary of his death until I read this article at theloop21. Interestingly though, last week I caught a part of an ESPN 30 for 30 documentary about Mike Tyson and 2pac called One Night in Vegas, which highlighted the similarities of their lives and the events which led up to that fateful night when 2Pac was shot and subsequently died after attending the Tyson vs. Sheldon bout on September 7, 1996.

I never found 2Pac’s music enlightening or even all that positive… but that doesn’t mean it’s unenlightening or negative. It’s not that simple to me… it’s a little more complex than that. His music touched a part of me which I always had to keep in check. It moved deep within me and stoked my black rage, but not in the way Public Enemy’s music did. With 2Pac it enflamed my “I don’t give a fuck about you and much less about myself” attitude. Within all of us is “the light” and “the dark” side of our personalities and 2Pac spoke to my “dark side”… and made it appealing.

I’ve seen a number of documentaries and programmes about 2Pac and in some ways his life reminded me of the fascinating but troubled life of Marvin Gaye, as depicted in his biography “Divided Soul“. Both had polarizing forces struggling with them and they would at times choose to indulge in the best and worst of themselves. I can relate to this for at times that has been my life. However, due to age, maturity and Jesus, I have been able to transcend (or is “suppress” a better term)… for the most part… the more destructive side of my personality.

Every so often, when someone pushes my buttons, I smile and shake my head and think to myself: “if they only knew”. There was a time when I lived my life by these lyrics of 2Pac: “I ain’t a killa but don’t push me, revenge is like the sweetest joy next to gettin pussy…” But with that said, Jesus isn’t finished with me yet.

In remembrance of a real souljah:   

sat’day riddymz

29 Saturday May 2010

Posted by asabagna in AfroSpear, AfroSphere, hip hop music, Jay-Z, Music, Rap, sat'day riddymz, Snoop Dogg, YouTube

≈ 1 Comment

sat’day riddymz

01 Saturday May 2010

Posted by asabagna in AfroSpear, AfroSphere, Ice Cube, Music, Rap, sat'day riddymz, YouTube

≈ Leave a comment

Remember when Ice Cube was hard!?

sat’day riddymz

17 Saturday Apr 2010

Posted by asabagna in AfroSpear, AfroSphere, Die Antwoord, Rap, sat'day riddymz, South Africa, YouTube

≈ Leave a comment

sat’day riddymz

30 Saturday Jan 2010

Posted by asabagna in AfroSpear, AfroSphere, Corruption, Critical Thinking, Geopolitics, hip hop music, Immortal Technique, Knowledge, New World Order, Racism, Rap, Revolution, sat'day riddymz, U.S.A

≈ Leave a comment

← Older posts

Select language then Translate

Subscribe via Email

Subscribe to Afro Spear by Email

Subscribe via Feed

Subscribe in a reader

Recent Posts

  • U.S. District Court Judge Carlton W. Reeves Sentencing Speech to Convicted White Racist Murderers
  • Hands Up, Don’t Shoot!
  • Cornel West on BBC HARDtalk
  • The Whiteness Project
  • Cornel West: “President Obama Doesn’t Belong on Any Shirt with Martin Luther King and Malcolm X”

Recent Comments

productreview on Caster Semenya determined to b…
Dawnatilla TheHun on “Why don’t Dictato…
Briana on Stuff Black People Like…
David Rohrig on When Will America Take Respons…
Mama Ayaba on Dr. Frances Cress Welsing: 12…

AfroSphere

  • Abagond
  • Africa is a country
  • Africa on the blog
  • Africa Portal
  • African Arguments
  • African Executive
  • African Hip Hop
  • AfriClassical Blog
  • Afropean
  • Another Way To View
  • Black Agenda Report
  • Black and Christian
  • Black Women of Brazil
  • Blog Africa
  • Breaking Brown
  • Brotha Wolf
  • ByBlacks – Canadian Black Experience
  • Colorlines
  • Daraja
  • Echwalu Photography
  • Electronic Village
  • Ewuare X. Osayande
  • Field Negro
  • Free Thinking Unabii
  • Global Voices Online
  • Hip Hop Republican
  • Kudzu, Mon Amour
  • Let’s Be Clear
  • Mind of Malaka
  • MsAfropolitan
  • Nana Kofi Acquah
  • NewBlackMan
  • Our Legaci
  • Outhouse Negroes
  • Pambazuka News Blogs
  • Poefrika
  • Project 21
  • Repeating Islands
  • Shawn James
  • Tafari
  • The Blackman Can
  • The Gentlemen's Standard
  • The Intersection of Madness and Reality
  • The Old Black Church
  • The Root Magazine
  • The Silver People Chronicle
  • This is Africa
  • This Is Your Conscience
  • Uhuru News

Site Meter

  • Site Meter

Afrospear Think Tank Blog

Afrospear Think Tank Blog

Copyright & Licence

Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Licence.

Meta

  • Register
  • Log in
  • Entries feed
  • Comments feed
  • WordPress.com

Archives

  • February 2015
  • December 2014
  • October 2014
  • August 2014
  • June 2014
  • May 2014
  • April 2014
  • March 2014
  • February 2014
  • January 2014
  • December 2013
  • November 2013
  • October 2013
  • September 2013
  • August 2013
  • July 2013
  • June 2013
  • May 2013
  • April 2013
  • March 2013
  • February 2013
  • January 2013
  • December 2012
  • November 2012
  • October 2012
  • September 2012
  • August 2012
  • July 2012
  • June 2012
  • May 2012
  • April 2012
  • March 2012
  • February 2012
  • January 2012
  • December 2011
  • November 2011
  • October 2011
  • September 2011
  • August 2011
  • July 2011
  • June 2011
  • May 2011
  • April 2011
  • March 2011
  • February 2011
  • January 2011
  • December 2010
  • November 2010
  • October 2010
  • September 2010
  • August 2010
  • July 2010
  • June 2010
  • May 2010
  • April 2010
  • March 2010
  • February 2010
  • January 2010
  • December 2009
  • November 2009
  • October 2009
  • September 2009
  • August 2009
  • July 2009
  • June 2009
  • May 2009
  • April 2009
  • March 2009
  • February 2009
  • January 2009
  • December 2008
  • November 2008
  • October 2008
  • September 2008
  • August 2008
  • July 2008
  • June 2008
  • May 2008
  • April 2008
  • March 2008
  • February 2008
  • January 2008
  • December 2007
  • November 2007
  • October 2007
  • September 2007
  • August 2007
  • July 2007
  • June 2007
  • May 2007
  • April 2007

  • Follow Following
    • afrospear.wordpress.com
    • Join 177 other followers
    • Already have a WordPress.com account? Log in now.
    • afrospear.wordpress.com
    • Customize
    • Follow Following
    • Sign up
    • Log in
    • Report this content
    • View site in Reader
    • Manage subscriptions
    • Collapse this bar