"Practice doesn't make perfect. Practice makes PROGRESS." - Catherine, in a coffee shop I was just at, where the lovely angel named Kate works

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SHYHEIM IS EXTREMELY REAL, AND A FUCKIN DOPE ASS MOTHERFUCKER. PEEP THIS ILLNESS:

http://www.zshare.net/audio/69761102d5843d/

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NEW MCS DON'T USUALLY DO MUCH FOR ME, BUT THIS GUY'S SONG IS SICK. MIKKEY HALSTED:

http://www.zshare.net/audio/162172078cd98be0/

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JOELL ORTIZ DROPS SOME TRUTH ON YOUR ASS ABOUT BEING "DROPPED" FROM AFTERMATH. PAY ATTENTION:

It really fascinates me how much feeling people put into a word. I starting thinking a lot about the word “dropped” recently. A few months ago after my former label mate Bishop Lamont told an interviewer I was, ”dropped” from Aftermath. Very shortly after his interview the news of my being “dropped” was all over the net, announced on the radio and even ended up on the evening news in Puerto Rico. People I hadn’t heard from in years called to express condolences after they heard I got, “dropped”.

A few people in my Mom’s building even taped notes on her door to express there grief over my getting “dropped”. My mom has stood by me throughout my struggle to get a record deal and she is really protective of me so that word “dropped” affected her a lot. She called me crying when she heard I got, “dropped”

I explained to her that I asked to be released and not “dropped” but she kept asking me, “Why are doing this to you” I told her no one was doing anything to me but that word,”dropped” had a grip on her. She is cool now but it was hard talking to her during that time. All cause of a word. I’ve attached two conversations about me where people are using the word ”dropped”. You can hear the emotions and the acting out that goes on around the word.

The first is where the rumor of me being dropped started. It’s the Bishop Lamont interview. During the interview Bishop is asked about me and my situation at Aftermath. Bishop sadly says, “don’t quote me but I think he got dropped.”

If you listen you can hear the mock concern about my being, “dropped” The whole, “I am sorry things didn’t work out” story gets going then Bishop goes on philosophizing on my lack of business savvy while dealing with the big Interscope machine. None of this banter is based in reality but it sounds good. Now By no means am I trying to disrespect Bishop or the interviewer. I’m simply pointing out something we all do. We all put feelings on words then create conversation to justify those feelings.

In the next conversation about me and and my being “dropped” the emotions are completely different than the Bishop interview. This conversation takes place Between miss Jones and dj envy from the morning show on hot 97. In this conversation you can clearly hear the contempt with which Miss Jones ridicules me over being, “dropped” You can also hear some anger. All the while Envy plays the role of impartial dj that’s just reporting what he heard. It’s all very entertaining but again, none of it based in reality.

My next example of how we sometimes add emotions to situations and words is based on a conversation I had with my dude Joe Buddens after he was ”dropped” from Def Jam When I spoke to Joe he was wild happy that he got dropped. I actually saw joy and relief in his face as he spoke. Joe chose a different way than most of looking at the situation. He looked at the word, “dropped as opportunity and freedom” That doesn’t make him right, it’s just the way he chooses to look at things.

In the past a few of my friends have accused me of over analyzing things. What do yall think? Am I crazy or do people put way to much meaning into words. please leave comments. Would love to hear from you.

By the way, The reality is pretty simple. I asked to get released because I was told that a few albums had to come out before they could even get close to putting mine out. Dre was kind enough to let me go and we worked out a deal where I will still be part of Detox. I owe them no money and they cut me a nice check for my services thus far on Detox. I am a relevant free agent with offers on the table and have more money from shows, writing and my deal with K1X then any advance I would get from a major label. Most importantly, I have publishing on one of the most important hip hop projects in the history of the genre.

Gotta Love it!



JOELL ORTIZ IS A FUCKIN' DOPE ASS MC. DON'T SLEEP ON HIS MUSIC. INTERSCOPE FUCKED UP.

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www.allhiphop.com

OBAMA DISSES LUDA WHEN LUDA TRIES TO BIG UP OBAMA:

Presumptive Democrat presidential nominee Barack Obama has condemned an endorsement song from Ludacris, in which the Atlanta MC criticizes rivals Hillary Clinton and John McCain.

The song “Politics: Obama Is Here” contains celebratory bars on Obama’s success (“The first is destined and it’s meant to be”), but turns venomous when Obama’s rivals are addressed.

Ludacris references the bitter Democratic primary battle by stating “Hillary hated on you/So that b**ch is irrelevant.”

Regarding Republican nominee John McCain, the rapper rhymes:

“McCain don’t belong in ANY chair unless he’s paralyzed/ Yeah I said it cause Bush is mentally handicapped/ Ball up all of his speeches and I throw ‘em like candy wrap.”

Through his campaign team, Senator Obama released a statement condemning the song as offensive and typical of much of Hip-Hop’s current lyrical content.

“As Barack Obama has said many, many times in the past, rap lyrics today too often perpetuate misogyny, materialism, and degrading images that he doesn’t want his daughters or any children exposed to,” explained spokesman Bill Burton. “This song is not only outrageously offensive to Senator Clinton, Reverend Jackson, Senator McCain, and President Bush, it is offensive to all of us who are trying to raise our children with values we hold dear. While Ludacris is a talented individual he should be ashamed of these lyrics.”

Previously Obama once that Ludacris’ music received heavy rotation in his iPod, a point also acknowledged in the song when the rapper says:

“With a slot in the president’s iPod Obama shattered ‘em/ Said I handled his biz and I’m one of his favorite rappers."

In November of 2006, Ludacris met with Senator Obama at his Chicago office, where the Grammy Award winners discussed youth empowerment.

The rap has also drawn the wrath of WomenCount, a new organization co-founded by former Rock The Vote President/political commentator Jehmu Greene.

"It is another example of hateful, sexist language being used on the campaign trail, and now is our moment to make it clear: not on our watch!” stated Rosemary Camposano, Communications Director, WomenCount PAC. “The leadership of both parties must step up to condemn such hateful speech and demand apologies. The Obama campaign has criticized the lyrics, but we call on the presumptive party nominee, who is the celebrated subject of the new song, to go even further: Publicly condemn the song. Demand an apology on behalf of the targets. Now."

Ludacris could not be reached for comment at press time.

WELL, LUDA DID GET TOO IGNORANT WITH THAT SHIT. I DON'T AGREE WITH HIM EITHER... HE NEEDED TO BE MORE WITTY WIT' IT.

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WYCLEF BEING SUED BY JACOB THE JEWELER? WOW, NUTTY:

Incarcerated jeweler Jacob “The Jeweler” Arabov and his company Jacob & Co. filed a lawsuit against Wyclef Jean, claiming the rapper/producer owes over $300,000 in unpaid bills.

According to The New York Daily News, a lawsuit filed yesterday (July 29), Jacob & Co. accuses Wyclef of purchasing $765,000 worth of watches and jewels between March of 2002 and January 2006, but failed to pay the balance of $319,680.

In June, Arabov started a 30 month federal prison sentence for his role in laundering over $270 million in drug money for the Black Mafia Family (BMF).

Arabov, 43, pled guilty to falsifying records and giving false statements.

Representatives for Wyclef Jean could not be reached a press time.

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METHOD MAN IS THE MOTHERFUCKIN' MAN:

We all know about Ghostface and his fascination/connection with the Iron Man franchise. However, there’s another Wu member who’s just as much of a comic book aficionado. Method Man has made it no secret that he’s a huge comic fan with a collection of over 25,000 comics. Meth has parlayed this enthusiasm into the creation of his own comic book, Method Man. Method plays Peerless Poe, a detective who’s out to rid the world of some Biblical bad-folk in what is a fun and energetic read.

Our own David D. was able to chop it up fanboy style with Method Man as he discusses his book, favorite comics, which of the summer adaptations were the most faithful - and of course, The Wire.

Sit back and witness how Tical makes it cool to like comics again.

Method Man: Wattup

TSS: What’s up man, what you got going on right now?

Method Man: On my way to San Diego for the Comic-Con.

TSS: Is this your first Comic-Con?

Method Man: Yeah, its my first time.

TSS: I know you’re a big comic collector. You excited about it?

Method Man: Yeah, I wanna see what it’s about. If it’s anything like the E3 I’m gonna have a blast.

TSS: So what’s the word with this comic book you got coming out?

Method Man: Huh?

TSS: What’s the word with this comic book you got coming out?

Method Man: (Laughs) It’s funny getting asked that, that’s why I wanted to hear you say that again. It’s called Method Man of course, named after me. Except for Method Man is in a gang of murderers who are descendants of the first murderer, Cain. My character doesn’t want anything to do with that lifestyle anymore nut that’s the only life he knows. So, in the outside world, he becomes a private investigator. He just takes the cases nobody else will because basically they don’t think the cases are real because they deal with paranormal and occult things.

TSS: So what was your role in the book? Did you just do the concept? The writing?

Method Man: The concept. David Atchinson took the writing over and Sanford Greene did the artwork.

TSS: What made you want to do this comic book?

Method Man: I never really thought about it. But when the opportunity presented itself, I jumped at it because I’m a big comic book fan.

TSS: Yeah, I remember the Wu-Tang had a comic book a few years ago. I collect too and—

Method Man: Wack. That shit was wack. I ain’t understand that bullshit.

TSS: Who’s idea was it?

Method Man: I don’t know. I ain’t have nothing to do with that shit. There were a lot of things going on I ain’t have nothing to do with. Like that wack-ass video game. That video game was garbage.

TSS: Wait, which game was that?

Method Man: Shaolin Style or some shit like that.

TSS: Now, back to this comic, I hear you got 25,000 comics or something like that…

Method Man: Yeah, I got a gang of books.

TSS: What were your favorites and what really influenced this comic book?

Method Man: All of them, really. I basically stuck with Marvel. I like some of the independent titles. I read comics like Evil Ernie. Vampirella. Lady Death. All those outside independents and stuff like that. Dark Horse Comics and Image when it broke off and all those artists formed their own company. But mostly Marvel was my mainstay. And any X-Men.

TSS: So X-Men were the favorite?

Method Man: Yeah.

TSS: So what was your favorite character?

Method Man: All of’em really. I wasn’t that much of a geek where it’s like ’such and such is my favorite character because he does this, that and the third.’ But I just love the books. I like the teamwork.

TSS: Did you catch the movies that came out this summer?

Method Man: I liked the Hulk because they kept it simple and stuck to the formula of Hulk being chased and the time and bothered and David Banner always having to constantly being on the move. That’s why I couldn’t understand that first movie. Iron Man was cool but I felt the bad guys weren’t up to par nor were the villains up to par in Spider-Man 3. You can’t put Venom and Sandman in the same movie. It’s like you wasted that shit.

TSS: Yeah, I though Venom should have had his own movie.

Method Man: Yeah pretty much, but this is the Hollywood format and formula for doing things. And I have to admit sometimes, even in the books, they kind of lump two characters together but it’s not all the time like that. Even this Batman movie, it didn’t live up to the hype. I think the fight scenes could have been better shot. I’m tired of the Hollywood idea of the audience actually wanting to be in the fight. So they keep the camera so close that you can’t actually see the fucking fight.

TSS: Yeah I know what you mean.

Method Man: You understand what I’m talking about? All you see is like the reaction or someone falling over a railing of some shit like that which we’ve seen a million times. That’s why when you get a movie like Wanted that slows the action up, y’know. It actually gets very graphic with it. That’s how far in detail a comic will actually go. We appreciate those details right there. But when you got the camera pushed in so close- we understand Batman is the Dark Knight but Batman whoops ass. Thoroughly. It’s like watching a Bruce Lee movie and shit. Bruce Lee doesn’t have to use a lot of strings and special effects and things like that and flying in the air and all that. No. We were intrigued by how he just whooped ass.

TSS: Right

Method Man: I would love to see them pull the camera back and actually show these muthafuckas whoopin’ ass. Even in the Spider-Man shit with the CGI, the action moves so fast it’s hard to keep up with sometimes. If you’re not in an IMAX theater, it’s hard to keep up with the action. That’s why I like Hulk so much because they actually took the time to slow the shit even thought the CGI was shaky, though, on the Hulk.

TSS: So Batman didn’t live up to the hype? People are saying it’s the best comic movie ever.

Method Man: I think people are just getting smoke blown up they ass by the media and repeating what they’ve heard. I like the way they’re taking it to a more serious level but in the end it was too long. They shouldn’t have lumped Two-Face’s story up in there like that. They could’ve saved that for the next movie. It takes me back to the fight scenes. I couldn’t see shit. I wanted to see him thoroughly whoopin ass. The only time I heard the audience “woo” was when the motorcycle flipped on the wall and came back. And a few chuckles for some of the shit the Joker was saying.

Christian Bale is a type of actor that goes in and does his homework and gets it right. Some of those producers should have put him in the fucking fighting gym and had him like Zach Snyder had those dudes on 300. These dudes went and trained. So you could pull that camera back and you could see the fighting. They pay these actors enough, shit, they might as well go in for a month and take some classes.

TSS: Do you think someone is going to come at you with an adaptation of your book in the future?

Method Man: I don’t know. I mean, my book is rough around the edges too, sorta like the comic book movies and shit. I mean, I’m entitled to that being that its my first one. There were a few inconsistencies in there and its hard to follow the storyline sometimes and you gotta go back and read certain parts. But all in all they did an excellent job, David and Sanford. I appreciate all the work and effort they put into my book.

TSS: So are you going to do a second one?

Method Man: I don’t think so. I don’t know. I doubt it.

TSS: Now I gotta go here because at The Smoking Section, we’re huge followers of The Wire and I wanna know about Cheese Wagstaff. Did you really relate to him? How do you feel about the character?

Method Man: Everybody relate to Cheese. You gotta have a Cheese. A Yin and a Yang, y’know. Cheese was a dude for self.

TSS: Everyone is kind of upset about The Wire not getting an Emmy nod. They get snubbed?

Method Man: Yea, I thought they got snubbed. Before I even got on the show, I thought they got snubbed. But then, y’know you get these new television programs like “Mad Men,” y’know not trying to take anything away from those dudes but like they jumped right into Emmy contention. Barely had their program for six months then, right there, Emmy contention. America picks and chooses who they want to see and don’t want to see. You just gotta live with it.

TSS: Do you think it’s racial or—

Method Man: I wouldn’t say racial, man. Let’s not play the racial card. It’s bad enough Obama running for president and people wanna play the racial card. It’s just a show that deals with so much realism that it’s too much for some people to take. That’s why it gets snubbed whereas you look at a Sopranos which at the end of the day, is entertainment whereas with The Wire it’s right up in your face. It scared America I think. It’s not a Black show. It’s definitely an everybody show. There’s cops that look at that show like “yea they got it right,” because, shit, one of the writers was an ex-cop. I mean, they did Baltimore a justice if you ask me. As well as an injustice in certain people’s eyes because of the ghetto aspect portrayed.

But I mean, when its real it’s real, you can’t hide it. Then you see the drug dealing and the cops and getting the wire into the system of the whole drug trade and going after the big guys and all that. 2nd season, they kind of switched it up. They went to the docks. You can’t tell a story without going to the docks and that’s what people can’t understand. And on top of that this was not a drug war show or a drug dealer show or a black show or a white show for that matter. It’s a show. Period. So in the third season they went back to the mattresses so to speak. The drug war and all that and the new blood trying to take over the old blood, which is all real. And they focused on the kids and the schools. It’s crazy. They covered every aspect they had to cover. Final season - newspaper and the thing was it’s all connected. You look at season one, you see the vibe. You see the connection. It’s like watching somebody’s life in five years.

TSS: So looking back years from now, people will look at the show as?

Method Man: Shit, I don’t know. You know shows like that, they get mentioned in shows like VH1 “I Love the 80’s”- y’know a quick mention and shit then it’s gone in the wind.

TSS: That’s a shame. You don’t think it’ll have a deeper impact than that?

Method Man: You see the Emmy nominations, bruh? You see anyone going to the internet and blowing up the Emmy’s about The Wire? No. I saw something on Cartoon Network that said that the “Star Wars episode of “Robot Chicken” got nominated for an Emmy.” And then it says “But no noms for the Wire?” with a big question mark and left it at that. That’s the best we can do. I’ll take it. But I think if people are that outraged they should write the Emmy’s and go protest, do all that shit and get it noticed. I think it’s so under the radar as far as Hollywood standards that it’ll never get one.

For more information on Method Man’s comic book, visit Hatchett Book Group and Myspace.com/MethodManBook.

WWW.THESMOKINGSECTION.NET

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HA HA! WHITE PEOPLE ARE FUNNY SOMETIMES:

In defense of hood rap
By Adam Bissen
adam.bissen@secondsupper.com

I am a young, moderately educated, gainfully employed, elitist, liberal-minded, Caucasian male from a small Wisconsin city, and I’m tired of being discriminated against for loving gangsta rap.
You should see the look in people’s eyes when I express my opinions on music I enjoy. When I credit Rick Ross for introducing new sounds to popular music, people look at me like I’m kidding. Saying “Hood Nigga” is a fresh song just earns looks of disdain. If I tell people Lil’ Wayne is one of the most gifted artists in contemporary music, my suggestion is not only rejected out-of-hand but my very mental capacities are called into question.

That’s cool, though. I can handle my knocks from society, but what I loathe are narrow-minded responses like “Oh, I hate rap music, but I love hip-hop” and the outright rejection of any song about making money, doing drugs, having sex or creating violence. I hate to break it to all you defenders of cultural integrity, but almost every interesting work of art over the past 1,000 years has involved some aspect of those four subjects. I can account for differences of taste, but saying there’s no good hood rap is just plain ign’ant.

For the traditionalists I will concede that “hip-hop” and “rap” are different things, rap being a style of rhythmic, rhyming music and hip-hop being the fun-loving urban culture from which it was born. But that’s taxonomical difference, not a musical one. Aesop Rock makes hip-hop music and so does Silkk the Shocker. The Geto Boys are a rap group, no different than Atmosphere. Arguing this is a moot point defended by fans who only want their favorite genres to contain “good” music, as defined by themselves.

Here’s the thing: Rap music is at least 30-years-old, and while it’s constantly evolving conventions of the genre have been set. You shouldn’t write off a rapper for describing drug deals and shootings any more than you would d fault an actor for taking a roll as a criminal. As they used to say 15 years ago: Hate the player, not the game.

Personally, I’d rather have a picnic in a park than stand on a street corner and sling crack, but I find the later more emotionally compelling. Yet that’s not the only reason I’d prefer to hear Jay-Z talk about making money than listen to Blackalicious appreciate a sunny morning. Jay, you see, is one of contemporary music’s most innovative lyricists, with internal rhymes, cultural allusions, puns, confidence, jokes and focus, all delivered with an ever-dexterous flow. Gift of Gab, Blackalicious’ main MC, rhymes literally and at one speed but many liberals think he’s a better rapper because he doesn’t talk about selling coke. As for conservatives, well, just ask Bill O’Reilly about his favorite Ludacris album.

In barstool arguments I usually stick to aesthetics when talking about music, for that’s the way I feel art ought to be appreciated, but the sociological background for gangsta rap should not be ignored. Although a good amount of hip-hop is focused on money and consumer goods, here’s a newsflash: Many of the game’s best MCs were born into levels of cyclical poverty that would astound, if not frighten, most residents of western Wisconsin. Being poor is obviously not a pre-req for being a good rapper, but aspiring for finer things is a universal emotion among the disenfranchised.

Here’s another newsflash: When rappers talk about stacks of money in the bank, bricks of cocaine in the closet and Lamborghinis parked in front of the mansion, they are almost always lying. The real emotional tug of hip-hop comes in figuring out why. It’s strange, but some people seem almost personally offended when they see a rapper in a music video sporting a huge chain, a big white T-shirt and a grill. The outfit screams “Look at me!” and that’s exactly the point. Young black men from the ghetto aren’t invited onto the Today show or Let’s Make a Deal, so they try to maximize their time in the spotlight. Hip-hop fashion, then, is no different than the comically large “zoot soots” poor Chicanos sported in the early 20th century, an assertion of individually from a community that would otherwise be commodified if not completely ignored.

The widespread misogyny in hip-hop isn’t something that should be saluted either, which is another aspect that makes gangsta rap tragic. The major drive of hip-hop originates from a population that is so down-and-out, so bereft of power or voice, that the only people aspiring rappers can assert dominance over are females in their own social class. The irony of hood rap is that it is superficially self-empowering while propping up a fabricated existence within a population with little power of its own. That’s why it rings with such vitriol when Lil’ Wayne boasts “I make money like a Caucasian.”

I’m not especially surprised that this irony is lost on most Wisconsinites, but I do think hip-hop is held to a double-standard among music fans. Just look at another favorite genre of mine, bluegrass, which originated from the poorest sectors of white society. As a rule, pretty much every bluegrass song is about repping your neighborhood, having a good time with your lady, killing your lady when she treats you wrong, driving a fancy car or getting drunk on corn liquor. That sounds pretty gangsta to be, but no one ever considers me as an enabling hypocrite for enjoying Bill Monroe. Don’t hate me for appreciating Bun B. either.

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I LOVE THOSE WHO LOVE LOVING LOVE IN LIFE. IT'S LOVELY!
PURE AND SIMPLE, BUT ALSO REAL AND TRUE.
YOU KNOW WHO YOU ARE!
GODDESS BLESS YOU,
MINDBENDER