Music Review: Fear Of God

Ever since Pusha-T, one half of the rap duo Clipse, announced that he was signing a deal with Kanye West's G.O.O.D. Music label, fans have been giddy with thoughts of what a solo project from the Virginia-born MC would sound like.

If Fear Of God is any indication, Pusha won't let them down. The mixtape features him spitting fiery lyrical barbs and larger-than-life boasts while telling his usual stories of cocaine profits, hot cars and even hotter women. While that might not sound out of the ordinary for a gangsta rapper, what sets Pusha aside is his lyrical grace.

He's at his best on "My God" where he declares, fittingly for the occasion, "There'll be no waiting, I have no patience, this is the end for all my unrecognized greatness."

Pusha gives his take on Drake and Bun-B's "Put It Down" on "Cook it Down" a track boasting about his cocaine culinary talents that might be better than the real version.

His "Blow Funk Flex Freestyle" is another standout, with clever lines like "A bird's eye view got me channeling my vision, turn one to two now the kilo's got a sibling."

While the Kanye West collaboration, "Touch It" is a solid track, it's not as good as you would expect given West's involvement. Its fatal flaw is the hook, which gets a little cheesy after a few listens.

"Can you just touch it, touch it, or just kiss it kiss, girl do somethin'. Do somethin'," Kanye says annoyingly. "Raid," featuring 50 Cent and Pharell, is another track with star-studded collaborators but underwhelming results.

The mixtape also suffers from a few missteps in terms of beat selection. For example, Pusha borrows the instrumental from "Money on My Mind," a 2006 Lil Wayne song that has already been freestyled a million times by artists. Pusha also raps over Soulja Boy's "Speakers Going Hammer," which is just plain corny, even if the lyrics are on point.

Despite these flaws, Pusha saves every track with his trademark coldblooded yet insightful lyrics and bold bravado. That's why Fear Of God definitely warrants several listens.

AUDIO // Download Pusha-T's new mixtape on his website.

State Police to review David Koschman homicide

David Koschman

In about 10 days, it will have been 7 years since David Koschman died from brain injuries suffered outside a Rush Street bar in an altercation with a nephew of Mayor Richard M. Daley and White House Chief of Staff William Daley who left Koschman unconscious in the street.

The 21-year-old Mount Prospect man died 11 days later.

The Cook County Medical Examiner’s Office ruled the death a homicide. Police knew that the Daleys’ nephew, Richard J. “R.J.” Vanecko threw the punch that connected with Koschman’s face and sent him on a fall that resulted in fatal brain damage. But no one was charged for the crime; it was ruled self defense, and the case was closed with countless questions still unanswered. The case was opened again earlier this year, but then closed again, still, with numerous questions unanswered.


Now the Illinois State Police department is gearing up for an independent review of the case, keeping alive the hope many have that justice is served. I commend Cook County State’s Attorney Anita Alvarez for requesting the review. The Sun-Times also deserves a great deal of credit for not letting this questionable handling of a homicide case involving someone with obvious connections to Chicago power simply fade away. They have been persistent, resourceful and scrappy in digging for the truth.


Read the full story from the Chicago Sun-Times here and read a previous blog post from me about this issue here.

Business as usual? My thoughts on despicable Chicago police actions recently caught on camera

As a black kid growing up in Chicago, I heard all types of horror stories about the Chicago Police Department.

Most of them were urban legends. Most of them were simply fueled by paranoia from a disenfranchised people. But as illustrated by individuals like John Burge, who allegedly took part in the torturing of some 200 or more men, most of them black — there's more than myth fueling anti-police sentiment. It doesn't take a genius to see that CPD has more than its share of bad apples.

The video at the top of this post shows two rotten cops inducing the sort of psychological terror that reinforces attitudes present long before N.W.A. made an anthem summarizing how many people in minority communities feel about the police. The incident was first reported by Chicago Public Radio, in this post on their website from Steve Edwards, who also happens to be a professor of mine at Loyola this semester.

While details about the circumstances of this video are still murky, one thing is obvious: the officers in this video decided to drive a youth, most likely a gang member, to a hostile gang's turf, open the doors of their SUV and allow rival gangsters to threaten and demean the youth.

One might argue that this scary moment might discourage the unidentified youth from gang life. But does something like this really deter the young man from gang life? Does the young man here feel grateful to the police for scaring him straight, or is he more hateful of authorities because they made a victim out of him? If you pick up on the tone of this post, you already know what my verdict is; this sort of behavior breeds hate. And that’s not what the world needs now, there’s enough of that going around.

Hopefully those two officers get what's coming to them. They aren't fit to be on the force or to be in any position of authority. I wouldn’t even want them hired as security at Lincolnwood Mall.

The Fraternal Order Of Police, the union representing CPD officers, railed on former Superintendent Jody Weis, and made his time at his post a living hell. The union even gave him a vote of "no confidence" last March and claimed the rank-and- file didn't believe the guy had their backs. Weis left his post on March 1 this year, after his $310,000-a-year contract expired.

When his appointment was announced in 2008, I thought the department could benefit from a shake up with a stranger to its ranks, especially in light of a long history of scandal and misconduct. But the union never seemed comfortable with him calling the shots. For example, decisions such as shuffling top police officials and handing off investigations of officer William Cozzi's alleged brutality to federal authorities rubbed rank-and-file officers the wrong way.

But the whole point of hiring Weis was to bring in an outsider who wasn't afraid to ruffle some feathers and put an end to what Weis called "business as usual."  The CPD has a long way to go to accomplish what Weis was brought in to do.  How do you tell anyone who has seen this video that "business as usual" no longer takes place?

You can't. Not with a straight face.

A pointless video, but eh whatever it gave me a chuckle

Vanilla Ice in his 1991 feature film debut, "Cool as Ice"

Chris Brown unleashes the dragon (I'm making fun of his hair, btw, that's a Sisqo reference...duh!)

People are creatures of habit. That's our nature, but also, often enough, our tragic flaw. And because of that, we recognize change as a good and necessary process, as long as it's in the right direction.

With that said...

Damn. Chris Breezy, why did you have to go and backslide?

The Chicago Sun-Times and numerous other news outlets report that Chris Brown got violent after an interview with broadcast journalist Robin Roberts on "Good Morning America" this morning. Brown apparently grew irritated by Roberts' persistent questions related to the domestic abuse incident (psychopathic beat down, to be frank) involving his former girlfriend, pop star Rihanna.

According to the Sun-Times, "Chris Brown stormed off the set of his “Good Morning America” appearance Tuesday morning and reportedly went into a violent rage backstage. The singer, who is said to have turned his life around since being charged with felony assault in 2009, was yelling, ripped off his shirt and threw a chair through his dressing room window TMZ reports."

Yikes. 

Not cool, Chris Brown. Not cool.

Here's a little tip: if you're on probation, don't get violent behind the scenes of a nationally televised newscast and throw a chair through a window, sending glass onto the sidewalk below and potentially endangering people. Because that might make the long arm of the law put the smackdown on you. As it should. With this incident comes the possibility that Brown could see prison time for violating his probation, if he actually faces any charges. 

It's obvious that Brown has a problem with his anger — a problem that seems to pose a risk to people around him when he blows a fuse. I sincerely hope he can overcome these problems, both for himself and for everyone who ever has to come in contact with him. 

The sad part of this is the fact that by all reports, Brown was making strides to become a better person, maybe the type who doesn't rage and turn into a violent monster when a woman upsets him.

And while he is trying to direct people's attention to his new album, which I'm giving the Voldemort treatment and refraining from naming, this latest incident is sure to give fans flashbacks of the horrible day when they heard that Brown had run amok all over Rihanna's beautiful face. 

Odd Future Wolf Gang Kill Them All goes bananas at SXSW

Odd Future Wolf Gang Kill Them All was one of the most anticipated acts atSXSW, and from what I hear, they didn’t disappoint. 

The California collective, especially standout Tyler, the Creator -- also took the time to spazz the fuck out.

Tyler demanded that someone, “man the fuck up” after he was hit in the nose by a Mountain Dew bottle during one set (first video). Predictably, the offender refrained from manning the fuck up, with the foresight that his confession would lead to a swift beat down that would be recorded and go viral soon after.  It’s a sad world we live in where you can’t even get your ass beat discretely without the incident spreading across Youtube the next day.

Even though he got popped in the face, Tyler also dealt out some pain to the audience when he reportedly broke a fan’s nose on accident after diving into the crowd from atop a speaker (second video).

To top things off, OFWGKTA stormed off the stage during one performance because of frustrations over technical difficulties (third video).

I guess boys will be boys?

Music Review: Nostalgia, ULTRA

Frank Ocean

Nostalgia, ULTRA

Self released

February 16

4.5/5

Frank Ocean’s Nostalgia, ULTRA is refreshing, but still holds familiar elements of popular R&B, as the singer blends prodigious lyricism, polished vocals and infectious beats to great effect.

       

Relatively speaking, Ocean is an oddball compared to the other young debauchees in Odd Future Wolfgang Kill Them All. The 23-year-old crooner is happily hedonistic much like other members of the upstart hip-hop collective; but his subject matter is much less grotesque.

Ocean’s superior songwriting skills are his debut album’s most striking strength.

Nostalgia, ULTRA is written with a high degree of lyrical intent and depth, regardless of if Ocean is wailing that people must “believe in something” on the doleful, soulful, “We All Try,” or if he’s singing playfully about leveraging his musical talents to woo women on the brashly comical “Songs For Women.”

Another standout track is the bouncy “Novacane,” a song about Ocean’s indulgences in drugs and sex — and about how he “can’t feel nothing” despite these pleasures.

Ocean offers more intriguing wordplay on 808-laced tracks “Dust,” “Love Crimes” and gives a stirring, passionate effort on the heavy-hearted “There will Be Tears,” his rendition of British star Mr. Hudson’s 2008 song by the same name. Keeping with his borrowing ways, Ocean samples the Eagles, “Hotel California” for one of the album’s biggest attractions, “American Wedding,” a sobering, downbeat take on love and matrimony. 

Nostalgia, Ultra is packed with R&B tracks you can nod your head to, while soaking in silky smooth vocals and dissecting insightful lyrics with minimal sonic distractions. The album isn’t overproduced and Ocean appears to have a great ear for beats that compliment his voice. As a bonus, he rarely auto-tunes himself, which is, of course, the next best thing to no auto-tune.

While the album features Ocean singing over a typical mixture of electro, soft rock, hip-hop, dance and soul beats, the content of his music is far more creative and diverse than most artists on the R&B landscape. Ocean is open and passionate, and doesn’t shy from taking listeners through every twist and turn of his existential crisis.

Paying homage to Nate Dogg

West coast hip-hop crooner Nathaniel Dwayne Hale, better known as Nate Dogg, died Tuesday at age 41 of complications stemming from multiple strokes. His soulful voice will be missed in hip-hop. In his honor, I'm posting this video, "Regulate" which was one of his first major hits back in the day, and one of my favorite songs ever. Gotta love that G Funk. Rest in peace big homie.

Taking a look at the Illinois Voting Rights Act of 2011

 

Gov. Pat Quinn signed the Illinois Voting Rights Act of 2011 into law on March 7, in advance of Illinois’ redistricting of House and Senate districts.

The bill is aimed at ensuring that minority communities don’t have their electoral power watered down during the map-drawing process, which happens after every census to reflect changes in population and demographics.

The law mandates that legislative districts must be drawn to "create crossover districts, coalition districts, or influence districts" that work to the benefit of racial and language minorities.

Here are more specific definitions of the districts named above:

Crossover district: Where a racial or language minority "constitutes less than a majority of the voting-age population but where this minority, at least potentially, is large enough to elect the candidate of its choice with help from voters who are members of the majority and who cross over to support the minority's preferred candidate."

Coalition district: Where "more than one group of racial minorities or language minorities may form a coalition to elect the candidate of the coalition's choice."

Influence district: Where "a racial minority or language minority can influence the outcome of an election even if its preferred candidate cannot be elected."

On one hand, you might say, why keep people apart, why not forge solidarity and unite their voices? On the ideological level, that’s absolutely valid. However, in a practical sense, such an approach doesn’t address the reality that groups do have separate interests, needs and political aims. This bill tries to help ensure that groups won’t have their voices drowned out due to district dynamics.

For example, in the redistricting following the 2000 census, Chinatown was sliced into four state representative districts. Asian leaders had advocated for some Asian communities to be put in the same district, especially since Chinatown’s population had increased by 60 percent in the decade before. This was to concentrate and bolster the political voice of a constituency which shares common needs and values. This bill helps minorities and immigrant communities be heard in Springfield.

One downside pointed out by critics contends that four public hearings aren’t enough to inform the state, and that the new law doesn’t explicitly call for officials to share maps of the districts before they are decided.

But just because the law establishes minimums, that doesn’t mean it can’t exceed expectations and go the extra mile; Gov. Quinn and legislators should go through this process with the utmost level of transparency, and collaboration with every Illinois community. Maps should be explained, critiqued, and reflective of what citizens want, not of what the politicians who profit from their votes want. It could muck the process up, but at the benefit of ensuring that there are no behind the scenes political games going on.

Grant Hill wants you to know he isn't a bitch

Grant Hill. Photo courtesy of Wikimedia 

Commons.

Phoenix Suns swingman Grant Hill is neither a “bitch”, nor an “Uncle Tom” and he wants to make sure that Jalen Rose, the rest of the Fab Five — and maybe even you and I— get the point.

“The Fab Five,” is an ESPN film about the college careers of the famous University of Michigan 1991 freshman recruiting class of Jalen Rose, Juwan Howard, Chris Webber, Jimmy King and Ray Jackson. In the film, which debuted on Sunday , King succinctly states his opinion of two Dukies in particular who he felt lacked cajones.

 “I thought Christian Laettner was soft, a bitch. And I thought Grant Hill was a bitch,” King said in the documentary, which documents the Fab Five’s experiences from 1991 to 1993.

To make matters worse, Rose, executive producer of the show, has said that he thought the black players recruited by Dukes were all “Uncle Toms,” a slur used to imply that a black man is meek and deferential to whites.

Hill, whose Duke Blue Devils defeated Michigan in the 1991 NCAA national title game,  wrote a blog for the New York Times today that said “It was a sad and somewhat pathetic turn of events,” for him to see the Fab Five’s remarks.

Now, I’m black, and while that doesn’t make me an expert on blackness, I can say this: Calling a black person an “Uncle Tom” is a surefire way to piss us off, and it’s often an unwarranted claim. I know firsthand. As early as kindergarten, I was picked on by some of my black classmates because I spoke very well — “like a white boy,” as they put it. The teasing didn’t stop there, in fact, it continued all the way up to high school. The ironic thing was that I’ve always considered myself to be very in tune with my roots — and very in love with my identity as a black person. It’s very painful to hear someone make derogatory remarks about your pride and identity, especially in light of all the adversity blacks have face in the U.S., just because you are different than them.

The Fab Five. From left to right, Jimmy King, Jalen Rose, 

Chris Webber, Ray Jackson, Juwan Howard.

“In his garbled but sweeping comment that Duke recruits only “black players that were ‘Uncle Toms,’ ” Jalen seems to change the usual meaning of those very vitriolic words into his own meaning, i.e., blacks from two-parent, middle-class families,” Hill said in the blog. “He leaves us all guessing exactly what he believes today.”

If Rose thought that coming from a middle class, educated background and being black was betraying the race or being subservient to whites then that says a lot about his lack of maturity as a college student. But then again, maybe that’s the point in all this; Rose is expressing a point of view he held as a teenaged basketball star fresh out of high school. King has also said as much.

Whatever the case, I’m glad Hill gave Rose a piece of his mind and slipped in a few barbs while he was at it. Hopefully this doesn’t get blown out of proportion or explode into a bigger bickering war.

If Hill is as classy as I think he is, he’ll leave things at this: “I am proud of my family. I am proud of my Duke championships and all my Duke teammates. And, I am proud I never lost a game against the Fab Five.”

Still many questions in homicide case involving Mayor Daley's nephew

The Chicago Police Department recently confirmed that Mayor Richard M. Daley's nephew, Richard J. “R.J.” Vanecko hit a 21-year-old man with a fatal punch -- but police closed the investigation without pressing any criminal charges.

David Koschman, of Mount Prospect, was with friends in the Rush Street area in April 2004 when his group got into an altercation with another group of men, one of whom was Vanecko, 29.

According to the Chicago Sun-Times:

"The case is closed. And the police aren’t talking. But many questions are still unanswered. The police have said only this: No one received special treatment.

Other than that, they have refused to discuss what happened when two groups of drunken revelers ran into each other in the Rush Street area in the early-morning hours of April 25, 2004, and Koschman, a 21-year-old from Mount Prospect, ended up on the street, unconscious, and Richard J. “R.J.” Vanecko, a nephew of the mayor and of White House Chief of Staff William Daley, ended up running away with a friend."

Koschman died 11 days later due to a brain injury from being punched in the head by Vanecko and falling to the concrete, according to reports. 

I think it's definitely premature to close the case with so many lingering questions about the events that led to this young man's death. And contrary to what the police department says, this absolutely smells like special treatment.  Hopefully CPD, or some other agency, digs a little deeper.

To read an excellent article about this, read  the full Chicago Sun-Times report on the issue.  When you're done, jump back here and let me know what you think.

Eminem's open letter to Detroit

Eminem is really laying the love on his hometown Detroit; first there was the "Imported from Detroit" Chrysler commercial, and now he's penned an open letter praising and uplifting the Motor City.  The letter is presented via video, and can be viewed above. It's stirring, if you're from Detroit, that is. Part of me thinks it's very corny, but I couldn't help but think to myself as I watched the video, "Kanye, Lupe, Common -- can we get some of that love, where are your open letters to the Chi?"

How about it?

Music Review: Lasers

Lasers

Atlantic Records/ 1^st and 15^th Entertainment

Released March 8

3/5

Hometown hip-hop hero Lupe Fiasco’s latest album, Lasers, is a solid effort, but a disappointment compared to his other two major releases, Food and Liquor (2006) and The Cool (2007).

The album’s release comes after a more than two-year struggle between Fiasco and Atlantic over the artistic direction Lasers should take. Atlantic wanted a more commercially attractive album rather than the inventive and unconventional approach the Windy City rapper is known for, according to numerous media reports.

In the context of that tug of war, it’s clear why Lasers is such a conflicted, bi-polar work.

Songs like the melancholy opening track “Letting Go,” featuring vocalist Sarah Green, and the utopian narrative “All Black Everything” showcase the insightful, socially conscience, lyrically deft Lupe Fiasco that fans expect.

But on the other side of the coin is “I Don’t Wanna Care Right Now,” a frenetic, cheesy club joint that’s a definite candidate for being the worst song Lupe has released on any album. Then there’s the lukewarm, “Get you out of my head,” a cookie cutter R&B/hip-hop collaboration featuring Trey Songz that is sure to get radio spin and bring disappointment to Fiasco diehards.

Tracks such as “Beautiful Lasers,” “Coming Up” and “Break The Chain” are decent enough, but that’s the problem — they are easily forgettable, just okay songs without replay value.  The electronic, poppy production on those three songs and throughout the rest of Lasers is too self-indulgent; it draws too much attention to itself — and away from Fiasco.

The outcome is awkward because Fiasco’s strength lies in his role as a thought provoker; but why have sermons if the people in the pews can’t hear the preacher?

He redeems the album to some degree with great songs like “Words I Never Said,” “Til I Get There,” “The Show Goes On” and “State Run Radio.” But following two classic, nearly flawless albums, Lasers is an obvious step back for Lupe as an artist — even if it’s a step forward commercially. It just misses too many times. 

Lasers has reportedly sold more than 200,000 copies in its debut week, reflecting the calculated mainstream appeal injected into the album. However, with Fiasco recently announcing that his next album, Food and Liquor II, will be a return to his roots, it looks like Lasers will go down as the exception, but not the rule.

Lupe Fiasco at last September's North Coast Music Festival in Chicago. 

Photo courtesy of yours truly.

Charlie Sheen does the Chi

Charlie Sheen is headed to the Windy City next month to give Chicagoans a more intimate whiff of all the WTF the eccentric actor has been cooking up as of late.

Sheen's My Violent Torpedo of Truth/Defeat is Not an Option Show "is coming for you" on April 3 at the Congress Theater.

"Will there be surprises? Will there be guests? Will there be mayhem? Will you ask questions? Will you laugh? Will you scream? Will you know the truth?  WILL THERE BE MORE?!?!" Sheen asks/exclaims in the live show's description on Ticketmaster.com.

"This IS where you will hear the REAL story from the Warlock ... Bring it. I dare you to keep up with me," the 45-year-old actor adds.

Wow, that sounds completely nuts. But it's what the people want, at least for now, and Charlie Boy knows it. Milk it Warlock, milk it.

Unless you’re somehow immune to unimportant, overblown entertainment news and celebrity worship — you know that the actor formerly known as Carlos Irwin Estevez is spazzing out — and loving it. And the media loves it (way too much) too.

I’m recommending this show, and not just because I’m a Charlie Sheen fan. I'm not. But because this man is uplifting.

We should all be encouraged by the fact that it’s evidently possible to go crazy, bash our bosses, get fired, throw a veil of charm and humor over our insanity — and then earn more popularity and more money while we’re at it. I wouldn't advise doing ANY of those things, I'm just saying it's good to know it's possible.

But then again, as noted by Good Morning America, Sheen's erratic behavior could be more about mental and professional disintegration than anything else. And it's hard to imagine anyone paying this guy for work in the future considering his, um...  #WINNING streak.