THE REASON that THE SOLUTION isn't THE TRUTH...

Anyone who reads this blog knows that I am a fan of good hiphop/rap music. Anyone who has known me for more than the last 2-3 years knows that before my addiction with everything Little Brother related I had an addiction that was even worst. Yeah it can get worst than the LB craze. LOL. I had a intense fanaticle faith in anything the rapper Beanie Sigel was a part of. Yeah I went from Sigel to LB...drastic change I know. LOL. But just like any other rapper I am a fan of my appreciation of Sigel was based on the fact that he actually made good music. One of my favorite things about Sigel was that he was emotional and personal with his rap even though he was also very hood and ignorant. I think that as humans we have different sides to us and all of us have an ignorant side as well as a concious or emotional side and just as rappers like Scarface and Biggie (2 more of my all time faves) Sigel showed all aspects of self in his music and made complete songs and albums and not just club tracks like Jeezy, or 50, or Cam' ron. Lyrically Sigel is a lot better than those dudes also so naturally I was hurt when he dropped the B. Coming...it was by far the weakest album he has made, lyrically.

Now Beanie Mac has returned again with what I saw him call (in an interview) his most complete album and after listening to it all I can think is...WTF is he thinking. I'm sure some will say that he is trying to change his life around and that may be the reason for the change but he is still gutter as always so I don't buy it. The only difference (which started in the album B. Coming) is now he is trying to be a lot more "user friendly" in what sounds like an effort to sale more albums. I can't really be mad at my man for wanting to sale more and make a good living but I damn sure ain't gotta like it. My man is hurting his legacy and killing my faith in him in the process. I know Mikesee and AB will read that line and think I must a been drunk writing it. Ya'll really can't understand how big I was on this dude but let me just run down my feeling on the songs on the new album. (I gotta do it fellas...LOL)

Track #1 "All The Above" - Are you f*cking serious Sigel!!! This is your single huh? You know about 5 years ago I would have bet my Masters Degree, my car, and a night with my first wife on our wedding night that Beans would NEVER do a track with R. Kelly and this song is exactly why. It worked for Big and Jay but it ain't for Sigel.

Track #2 "Bout That" - Catchy beat rapping about flossing.....TRASH! But I love the moaning woman in the background. LOL!!!

Track #3 "You Ain't Ready For Me" - I have been waiting for Styles and Sigel for 6 years. Makes sense that it happens now since Styles P is WORKING (2 albums and a mixtape in like 10-11 months) and I like that song but next time I pray for something I will ask for exactly what I want....God please give me a Styles P, Sigel, AND Scarface track with a topic in the area of growing up hard, living poor, losing homies, and taking care of seeds with a slow melody, a dark undertone, and ridiculous baseline that's pulls the emotion out of all three artists. Thanks ;-)

Track #4 "Go Low" - Good idea for Sigel to get that tough beat with the reggae artist snapping on the hook and adlibs. That is always a good move for gutter artists but it was better when Game did it and MUCH BETTER when Shine did...is that bama still in prison?

Track #5 "Gutted" - Most will like this track but to me it's a Jay track featuring Sigel that was refurbished for this album to be a Sigel track featuring Jay and it's just ok. Yeah I said refurbished...LOL!!!

Track #6 "Pass The Patron" - This song is exactly why this isn't a good album. The formula for this track was a POPular rapper on the hook, a state prop rapper, and a rapper people know but don't understand half the time all with Sigel. Now I would first think TIP, Freeway, and Trick Daddy but that's just me. Hell even Luda, Young Chris, and Andre 3000 I could possibly see on some Hollywood Divorce type sh*t but NOOOOOO we get P. Diddy, Peedi crack, and Ghostface Killa. Who is producing this album?

Track #7 "I'm In" - I guess it's cool if you believe Sigel is a Mack in the sense of pimpin...I don't buy it.

Track #8 "Hustlas, Haze, and Highways" - I've heard it about 10 times and I'm no more interested than you are just reading the title. First time I have ever described a Sigel track as boring.

Track #9 "What They Gone Say To Me" - I can think of one thing....redo tracks 1-9!!!!! Calling this one average is being nice.

Track #10 "Judgement Day" - Okay Sigel this is what I expect when you try something different. Ozzy Osbourne...definitely unexpected. Good track.

Track #11 "Rain" - Anything with Sigel and Scarface on it seems to instantly dope. I'm beginning to believe that Sigel should allow Face to produce all his albums from now on. This is the deep sh*t I was talking about ya'll...just with Sigel wasn't on the hook. LOL. Shout out to Raheem Devaughn on this one too.

Track #12 "Dear Self" - Concept isn't original but this may be the best song on the album.

Track #13 "Prayer" - If it didn't sound like Beanie rapping a Scarface song it would probably be the best song on the album. Shout out to Raheem Devaughn again!!! He did his thing on this track. Damn this sounds like Scarface was like "Beans, I ain't using this song...you want it? You can keep the lyrics too." They both just dropped albums, don't act like it's not possible. LMAO.

Somewhere along the line Beanie Mac the rough around the edges street rapper became Beanie Sigel the flashy thug trying to go double platinum. I'm hoping that somehow we can get back to this:

And away from This!

Come on Sigel a multicolored scarf...that is outta line!

The Instrumental Version

Growing up I always knew that my mother played in her high school band at H. D. Woodson in DC because she made sure every time it came up that you knew they were two time band champs of the city when she was there. We all have our things right? Well growing up she never forced the band thing on us and since my different circles of friends never looked upon it as a cool thing...neither did I. Peer pressure is a bitch aint it. LOL. In high school we moved to NC and the view was different but by that time I had lost any interest in that stuff as I was so into comics and started looking at girls a lot more. LOL. My sister however did pick up a couple of instruments in middle school so I used to listen to her when she would practice...trust me, not an easy task at all. Which is why she gave it up by the time she got to high school. But anyway, I go to college and anyone who knows anything about A&T knows that my school is big on the band thing so you can't help but admire them. That admiration wasn't huge for me but it gave me a chance to share that love for the band with my mom and that was huge for me. Now I am far beyond college life and I look back and suddenly I wish I had picked up an instrument all those years ago in middle school/high school. Don't ask me where it's comming from but it's here. So now as I contemplate starting this new journey as one of my new things to try in 2008 I have absolutely no idea where to start. LOL. I guess I need to hit up the yellow pages and start looking for folks who give music lessons (is it just me or does that picture seem hilarious...LMAO)...but before I do that I need to pick an instrument:

There are String Instruments:



Who doesn't want to know how to play the piano right...LOL. I like the guitar a lot too and actually started to learn both of them before I succumbed to peer pressure in middle school.










There are Wind Instruments:



My mom played an instrument I wouldn't be caught dead playing...the flute. My sister played another instrument I just can't see myself playing...the Clarinet. Oboe is a no go also and you don't play the Tuba unless you are in a marching band. So it's the Trumpet, the Saxaphone, or the trombone. Basically the jazz instruments.




There are Percussion Instruments:



These instruments always seemed like they would be the easiest to me. Either you can catch a beat or you can't...but I'm sure if I chose the drums it WOULD NOT be that simple. LOL.








Honestly, I'm sorta leaning toward the Trumpet right now because I seem to love the way horns crank on a lot of my favorite rap albums right now. LOL. But I am open to advice, suggestions, and jokes. LOL.

"But Money Don't Change You...It Just Make You More of What You Already Are"

Living in the DC area as a young professional it's pretty easy to get caught up in the rat race of chasing money. A lot of us find ourselves unintentionally focused on that pursuit once all the bills and other things in life come about. Lately I have been doing a lot of thinking about the near future goals in my life and it's hard not to notice how much money plays a part in some of those goals. What I'm wondering is where is the line at before you are just money hungry? The thing about greed is that it's NEVER satisfied because you can always have more, so when you get that green eyed monster on your back it's hard to shake. So when does it become less about goals and more about money? You reach your goals and then make more advanced ones to replace them and those "more advanced goals" usually require more money.

We live in a society and world where money is vital to survival...they go hand and hand so it's very easy to get caught up in it. Think it ain't important if you want but according to a response on another blog by my girl TC Finances is the #2 cause of divorce. Fellas tell me it would be easy to be married to a woman who makes $15k more than you...???? I'm not even saying you aren't doing your thing or have it together. I'm talking you sitting on $75,000 at 28 years old and she is sitting on $90,000 at 25...that isn't some easy shit to cope with for a lot of men but that is a very possible reality. Ladies, the same thing goes for you. Tell me you want to date a brother with bad credit when you shit is A1 and you got a house, a car, a large savings account, and some nice things you have splurged on. As petty as it may seem that can be a real dilemma for a lot of people.

Personally I try to keep my goals in mind when I think about "more money". I have always been family oriented and always wanted to have a nice size family and in order to do that...yep I gotta get some bread but once I have enough for us to live comfortably I am pretty much done chasing. I ain't got the patience. I'd much rather spend time with my wife and kids than spend time at work so my wife and kids could do something without me. You should have read my motto by now "what's the point of making all this money if I can't get off of work to enjoy it"....I'm trying to live by that shit. And as far as the finances and relationships go...it actually turns my stomach to learn that this is the #2 reason for divorce. It's a challenge but have you EVER heard of a marriage that didn't have challenges. I think the problem is our (me included) focus on money being placed over things that should matter a lot more than finances. My feeling...if you love that person then their financial status can't change that. So maybe money can't change you but it can damn sure change your mind huh?

Let me know what you think people...???

SICED like sh*t!!!

For the past week I have been siced in anticipation of my first time doing some business travel. Being young and single it's natural for me to want to travel and after damn near 4 years my time is finally here. And wouldn't you know that my first time I they have sent me to Atlanta. Talking about being SICED!!!!

Honestly, I am not even a huge fan of this city but I do like to visit and when I got off of that plane today and felt that 73 degree weather it made the entire trip worth it. Needless to say I am gonna be way overdressed all week cause it was in the 40s at home and on my last trip down south (Thanksgiving) I was underdressed, freezing my ass off. LOL. Oh well, I will get by fine. Main thing on the agenda is to hit some great food spots while I'm here because I just finished fasting with my church today and I am dying for a steak. Second thing on the agenda is to hit the local tourists spots...MLK monument, ATL Aquarium, Historical black schools, Magic City, Stroker. LMAO! Ya'll know ATL is know for them spots too.

If anything noteworthy happens I will be sure to follow up but now I gotta get ready to work this week. So until I write again...