Next up on the (2)Dope hot seat is one of Inglewood’s up & comers, Shawn Chrystopher. We talk about individuality and conformity, the city of champions and why the Staples Center > Great Western Forum [1]. Check it out.
[1] It’s the Forum all day, eh day for me though.
And as always, if you’re digging this, hit up Gangstarr Girl for a fresh take on hip-hop, politics, fashion and other worldly and wordy things through the eyes of a New York-helmed around-the-way girl. Without further adeiu…
1987
Hollywood Shuffle is the anti-Blaxploitation film. The Blaxploitation genre had a tremendous impact on culture, but in trying to break stereotypes and diversify the images of Black people in film, the films still were very stereotypical. Hollywood Shuffle is a satiric look at African American actors in Hollywood. It’s the story of an actor limited to stereotypical roles (ie pimp, hustler, slave, mandingo, etc) because of his ethnicity, who dreams of making it big as an esteemed actor.
With it being *shudders* Black History Month, Starr takes the time out to dedicate a post to one of the GOATs. And as always, if you’re digging this, hit up Gangstarr Girl for a fresh take on hip-hop, politics, fashion and other worldly and wordy things through the eyes of a New York-helmed around-the-way girl. Without further adeiu…
As influential as Curtis Mayfield still is today, he never enjoyed the same success in the 60s and 70s as his Motown counterparts. Luckily for him, he wasn’t just a singer, but also a an excellent guitarist and songwriter who penned hits for the likes if Gladys Knight and the Pips, The Staple Singers and Aretha Franklin. He had a hand in shaping the sound of three Blaxploitation soundtracks including Superfly, Sparkle, and Claudine.
I’m not really a fan of “tributing” rappers (especially on the days of their passing), but it just wouldn’t be right if today passed without recognizing one of the greats of the past. Big Moon Dog in his prime was that rare breed of “upper echelon MC” who had the ability to battle rap and make good songs and make a good album (Canibus should have taken notes). And while his way-too-short legacy will forever cast doubt over his “Top *insert number*” status, you can’ tell me that Capital Punishment wasn’t along the same lines of Illmatic/Ready To Die classic status. Enjoy some of his greates moments under the cut.
With it being *shudders* Black History Month, Starr takes the time out to dedicate a post to one of the GOATs. And as always, if you’re digging this, hit up Gangstarr Girl for a fresh take on hip-hop, politics, fashion and other worldly and wordy things through the eyes of a New York-helmed around-the-way girl. Without further adeiu…
It’s Black History Month so I decided to be cliche and jump off the icons edition of Blaxploitation Friday. Today’s solute goes to Gordon Parks–photographer, journalist, author, director, visionary.
So the good folks at URB asked Shake and I to give our own personal top 10 favorites of 2008, and it’s just been put up over on their site. Here are a few excerpts:
FAVORITE RANDOM ACTS OF FUCKERY
MEKA: fleece johnson: booty warrior
after seeing this video i’ve come to the conclusion that i can’t go to any kind of jail. at all. fuck that. i’m mad skinny and i take care of my skin; they’ll use me as currency in that bitch.
SHAKE: gangster ass laterian milton
although we never officially dubbed this a RAoF it’s safe to say this little fucker deserved that stamp. to make matters worse, dude went in on like three different occasions.
Check the rest out here (or by clicking on the picture).
I remember when this used to come after Soul Train on Channel 5 (when it was simply called KTLA, way before it became The WB CW), and whenever it came on during the holidays I used to pause everything to watch with fam. And as always, if you’re digging this, hit up Gangstarr Girl for a fresh take on hip-hop, politics, fashion and other worldly and wordy things through the eyes of a New York-helmed around-the-way girl. Without further adeiu…
1978
Starring Diana Ross, Michael Jackson (before he was a monster), Nipsey Russell and Richard Pryor. You already know what The Wiz was all about. It was The Wizard of Oz but with soul! The movie was an adaptation of the 1975 Broadway musical originally starring Stephanie Mills as Dorothy.
Here’s the deal, party people. Since today is obviously an important one in American history, I wanted to do an interactive, continuing post that everybody can participate in. All you have to do is take a photo of yourself voting (like mine above [1]), and shoot an ImageShack/Photobucket/etc. link in this post’s c-section as well as the state you voted in, and your photo will be posted as well. Let’s shake up the world, people. UPDATE: Simply show your support now, and your pic will go up.
[1] I voted by mail three weeks ago, hence the reason my picture was taken in my kitchen.
In case you didn’t know, we lost another influential comedian in Dolemite himself, so Starr is giving him a proper send off. And as always, And as always, if you’re digging this, hit up Gangstarr Girl for a fresh take on hip-hop, politics, fashion and other worldly and wordy things through the eyes of a New York-helmed around-the-way girl. Without further adeiu…
(1975)
I’m taking a brief break from “Malik 16 Week” and the “Blaxploitation Friday” horror edition to feature Dolemite, in honor of stand up comedy legend Rudy Ray Moore, who died on Oct 17 due to complications from diabetes. Rest in peace.
In the middle of Halloween Month, Starr looks to an urban remake of a classic tale. And as always, if you’re digging this, hit up Gangstarr Girl for a fresh take on hip-hop, politics, fashion and other worldly and wordy things through the eyes of a New York-helmed around-the-way girl. Without further adeiu…
Synopsis:
Bernie Casey (formerly of the L.A. Rams) stars as Dr. Henry Pride, a prominent physician who partakes in an experimental formula for the treatment of liver disease — which turns out to be a close chemical cousin to Dr. Jeykll’s notorious concoction. The drug transforms Pride into a homicidal predator who goes out on murderous nocturnal rampages. Similar to other movies in its class, it adopts low-budget action style until the King Kong-derived climax.
Episode 12: “Ready Rock”
Have you ever found yourself loyal to a fault? We can’t pick who we love, that shit just happens and Jorge has a lot of love for Stacks; they have history. But the fact of the matter is, Stacks has fucked up one too many times. Jorge has had the feeling that his best friend has been playing him on the low, is he right? Or just paranoid? As for Isabel, she is dealing with her own drama, having to go to the morgue to identify the body of her slain brother. Hope ya’ll paying attention because Jorge and Isabel are connected in more ways than one! Shouts to Andre Pitt for this week’s DOPE ass pic and RL for the DOPE mix! Pay attention. – Cyph
DOWNLOAD: BK Cyph – Episode 12: “Ready Rock” | Mediafire
PREVIOUS: Episode 11 | Episode 10 | Episode 9 | Episode 8
As many of you know, I hit a few Rock The Bells last month. What many don’t know was that I spent a good month or so trying to track down all four members of The Pharcyde for this special interview, and I had to hit two of those festivals just to complete this piece. When you guys aren’t busy downloading all the free stuff we shill here, I invite you all to read about my exploits as well and the interview I did.
