Rest In Peace to Malcolm X. What happens when you're a black leader making a huge impact in the world? What happens when you do everything in your power to make this sick world a better place? The government kills you. Or a racist will. They killed Martin Luther King Jr., they killed Huey Newton, they killed Steve Biko, Medgar Evers, Marcus Foster, Harry & Harriette Moore, Fred Hampton, and the list doesn't stop there. It never does. What the fuck is wrong with this world? Sick fucks. They're the ones that need to die. They're the ones that need to be killed. Yeah, I said it. You should too. And I don't hate everyone in the government. Not all of them are bad. But enough of them are. That's a fact. Now they're gonna try to kill me. Remember that.
-- Time For A Change. A Real Change. Not An Obama Change. A Real Change. Change Your Mindset.
And I'm Not Anti-Republican. Not Anti-Democrat. I'm Anti-Everything, It's All A Load Of Crap.
Sweat Equity. The first video from I Self Devine's LA State of Mind mixtape. Enjoy it. And yes, I do realize at this point some of you are probably thinking, "Damn, CJ... Why the fuck you pushin' I Self Devine on us so hard."
My answer is that you should shut up and enjoy the music. If you don't enjoy it, you don't know what good hip hop is. So go listen to Travey from The Gym Class Heroes and pretend you know even the slightest bit about hip hop. You don't. Sorry to come off harsh, but it's true. And I'm not sorry.
This is. I Self Devine is. Here he discusses 'L.A. State of Mind,' his first mixtape out of four free installments he'll release that'll make up 'The Culture Series.' The final mixtape will be followed very closely by his official Rhymesayers LP, 'The Sounds of Low Class America,' that's slated to drop on May 8th.
Here's all you need to know: It's authentic hip hop; rare these days. It's profound music. And finally: It's better than all that other shit you've been listening to for who knows how long. Oh yeah, and it's fucking free.
Extremely vulgar and offensive. Perfect. Made for me. If you're easily offended... Two things: 1. Don't ever come back here and read my shit. 2. Man, get over yourself. Life's way too short to worry about people saying stuff you might not agree with. Be a man. Be a woman. You don't like gays? Fuck you. Your kid's are gonna be gay. And it'll make you a better person. Then you'll realize that gay people are great. I have two gay uncles. They're two of the coolest motherfuckers I know. So get offended. And then leave. And never come back. You're not wanted here.
Sorry. I hope you laugh at the video. Joey Diaz is no joke. Youtube his videos. He's insane. But in a good way. Is there a bad way to be insane? Hell no.
This guy is awesome. Funny interview. Cool dude. Makes crazy good retro funk for that ass, and yeah, you should know about him. I found out about him like most people did: I watched one of the best movies of the last... forever. It's called Drive. Stop. I know what you're thinking. I thought the same thing. Get over yourself. Yes, it stars Ryan Gosling. Yes, he's the guy from The Notebook. Dude. Watch Drive now. And you don't have to thank me. You should, but no, you don't have to.
Anyway, Kavinsky's song 'Nightcall' is the opening song of the movie and it's fucking BADASS. Seriously. Learn something.
-- Gangster
Here's the video for 'Nightcall.' You will have to thank me for this one. You're welcome in advance.
Dinosauria, We Born like this Into this As the chalk faces smile As Mrs. Death laughs As the elevators break As political landscapes dissolve As the supermarket bag boy holds a college degree As the oily fish spit out their oily prey As the sun is masked We are Born like this Into this Into these carefully mad wars Into the sight of broken factory windows of emptiness Into bars where people no longer speak to each other Into fist fights that end as shootings and knifings Born into this Into hospitals which are so expensive that it's cheaper to die Into lawyers who charge so much it's cheaper to plead guilty Into a country where the jails are full and the madhouses closed Into a place where the masses elevate fools into rich heroes Born into this Walking and living through this Dying because of this Muted because of this Castrated Debauched Disinherited Because of this Fooled by this Used by this Pissed on by this Made crazy and sick by this Made violent Made inhuman By this The heart is blackened The fingers reach for the throat The gun The knife The bomb The fingers reach toward an unresponsive god The fingers reach for the bottle The pill The powder We are born into this sorrowful deadliness We are born into a government 60 years in debt That soon will be unable to even pay the interest on that debt And the banks will burn Money will be useless There will be open and unpunished murder in the streets It will be guns and roving mobs Land will be useless Food will become a diminishing return Nuclear power will be taken over by the many Explosions will continually shake the earth Radiated robot men will stalk each other The rich and the chosen will watch from space platforms Dante's Inferno will be made to look like a children's playground The sun will not be seen and it will always be night Trees will die All vegetation will die Radiated men will eat the flesh of radiated men The sea will be poisoned The lakes and rivers will vanish Rain will be the new gold The rotting bodies of men and animals will stink in the dark wind The last few survivors will be overtaken by new and hideous diseases And the space platforms will be destroyed by attrition The petering out of supplies The natural effect of general decay And there will be the most beautiful silence never heard Born out of that. The sun still hidden there Awaiting the next chapter.
I Self Devine has been one of my favorite musicians for many, many years now, and if you like hip hop that has depth to it, he'll most likely end up being one of your favorite artists as well. Here's a recent interview where he discusses a series of four albums he's going to be releasing for free that will eventually lead up to his full length Rhymesayers Records LP, 'The Sounds Of The Low Class America,' which is set for release on May 8th, 2012. If you can't already tell, this music is the perfect soundtrack for a Blue Collar Gangster.
Below is a bio of I Self Devine from the Rhymesayers website. Rhymesayers' roster is extremely impressive, in case you're not familiar with them. Since 1995 they've been putting out some of the best hip hop around, lead by Atmosphere {Slug & producer Ant}, Eyedea & DJ Ablilities, Brother Ali, MF Doom, Felt {Slug & Murs}, Soul Position, Abstract Rude, and many many other talented MC's and musicians.
Chaka Mkali, also known as I Self Devine is a musician, MC, community organizer, racial justice trainer, graffiti artist, muralist, program coordinator and director of organizing and community building at Hope Community Center in Minneapolis.
As an MC, I Self is known as an integral part of the Atlanta and Twin Cities underground Hip Hop community as ½ of the duo Micranots, ½ of Semi Official, ¼ of the Dynospectrum, and as a soloist. Over the last decade I Self has released over 10 albums of political conscious socially aware music capable of moving the crowd as well as uplift the spirit and sustain the movement.
As a graffiti artist and muralist, Chaka Mkali is recognized as one of the crucial figures in the revitalization of graffiti art in the Twin Cities using the skills developed in the streets, alleyways, walls, and store fronts of Los Angeles, Minneapolis and Atlanta.
As The Director of Organizing and Community Building Chaka has developed impressive work with very diverse largely low income teens and young adults that is impacting individual lives and collectively helping to bring change to a challenged community.
Here's a picture taken after my deviated septum surgery. I look pretty happy, right? Maybe it's because at the time of this picture I essentially had two tampons shoved deep into my nostrils and I could only breathe from my mouth for two days. Torture. Sore throat, the driest cotton mouth you could ever imagine, and a craving for a cold beer like you wouldn't believe. I'm told that it's not the best idea to mix alcohol with vicodin (like I've never done it before), so I'm trying to be a good boy this time around. Mac Lethal said it best, though: "It's written on my medication bottle, mix some alcohol with this and that's a better way to wobble."
Either way, I'm recovering, and life is good. My family is helping me greatly with taking care of the kids. I'm not supposed to lift over ten pounds for a week, which means I certainly can't pick up my monstrous kids, let alone some heavy items at work every day. All I know is my extremely skilled Doctor (Thanks, Dr. Schuetz) pulled out the tampons and sprayed some numbing liquid and told me to take a deep breath. I hesitated a bit for fear it would hurt like hell, but he assured me it would be fine. I trusted him and it's the deepest breath I've taken since... maybe ever. It feels good. I'm on my way to breathing like a normal human being. Smelling good foods, etc. I'm very excited. I can only hope everyone else is as optimistic about life as I am at the moment.
In a couple hours I'm going to be out cold in the surgery room to repair my deviated septum. No, it's not from cocaine usage. I was born with one working nostril, and for most of my life I was able to live a fairly normal life all things considered. Something happened over the last couple years that really made it unbearable for me to live with, so here we are. Let's get this thing fixed. No more snoring, no more waking up with chapped lips and a throat so sore it feels like I have a case of strep. No more blowing my nose constantly to try to get even the slightest bit of airflow through my right nostril passage.
Here's a picture showing a deviated septum. Mine is deviated to the opposite side.
Wish me luck. I'm excited. Out of work for a week, which means I'm not gonna be making any money; black eyes like I got in a fight with Mike Tyson; drugged to the point where I'm not gonna be able to help out with the kids for a while; therefore I won't be much use to the wife around the house. But hey, I'm still excited. As the great Mills Lane so famously used to say before each and every bout: Let's get it on!
Kirby's seen a lot of tragedy in his lifetime, yet still he pushes on and maintains a positive outlook on life when most people would've either gone crazy or given up completely. This album is incredible. No, you can't burn it off of me. Okay, maybe some of you can. But dude, support this man. Kirby Dominant is an Oakland legend. He makes great music because he's passionate about making great music. Simple philosophy, right? Enjoy the hell out of this and go on itunes or go here: Fake Four Inc. | Artist | Paranoid Castle
Buy the album and digital version for something silly like ten bucks. Spread the word. I'm gonna post another video later. Probably once this one gets a few million hits or whatever. But seriously; Kirby deserves your money. He's a legitimately good dude that makes positive and uplifting hip hop. Very rare stuff. Always inventive, the consummate creator, The Dominator and his producer, Factor, are Paranoid Castle. If you're looking to buy the album, it's called 'Champagne Nightmares.' Have fun laughing and singing along to the album.
