The Crew

No post today... Just a pic of me and the fellas in Vegas. Click to enlarge.

Have a safe weekend...

Lisa "Left Eye" Lopes' Final Moments... Should This Video Have Been Released?

This video aired on VH1's "Rock Docs" special that featured Left Eye from TLC. Her friend in the passenger's seat caught the accident on camera.

It's kinda eerie. She was the only one wearing a seatbelt (lap belt), yet she was the only one killed; None of her friends really know what caused the crash, yet they all screamed before the car veered off the road; and Lisa seemed extremely calm during the whole thing--not to mention the fact that whoever was shooting the film never put the camera down before impact.

It's very strange.

The bigger question is was it right for this tape to be released to the public? Is it right to broadcast someone's last moments and re-open her family's, friends' and fans' wounds?

Below is a piece written by Neely Tucker of the Washington Post. In it she discusses the VH1 documentary which Lopes had filmed, and also analyzes her mental state during her last days while on her "spiritual retreat" in Honduras.

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In life, Lisa "Left Eye" Lopes, the "L" in the pop group TLC, was probably best known for burning down the Atlanta mansion of her boyfriend, NFL star Andre Rison.

In death, after she was killed in a car crash in Honduras in 2002, she was again famous for something other than singing, when a picture of her corpse was a morbid Internet sensation briefly before it was taken down.

Tonight at 9, VH1 and VH1 Soul debuts "Last Days of Left Eye," a 90-minute documentary that includes a clip of the fatal wreck, shot from inside the car. Lopes was filming a documentary about herself and a camera operator was sitting in the passenger seat when Lopes lost control of the SUV she was driving. The last sound is Lopes screaming. The last thing filmed is the onrushing ditch where her car would crash.

It has the awful rubbernecking quality of any wreck you see on the highway, and we can only imagine how quickly it's going to be posted on video-sharing Web sites.

But whatever the grotesqueries involved in watching a pretty young woman die, it's fair to say the 30-year-old Lopes would have wanted you to see it. In a career downturn after personal upheavals and alienating her band mates, Lopes had taken a camera crew to Honduras to document a 30-day self-styled spiritual retreat with friends and family. She opened up her mind, body and thought to the camera, sometimes to cringe-inducing effect.

The wreck clip was included with her family's consent, and director Lauren Lazin ("Tupac: Resurrection") says that after viewing more than 200 hours of raw footage she was convinced that Lopes would have wanted it that way.

"She embraced just showing everything," Lazin said in a telephone interview this week. "She talks about death in a very different way. I don't think she was looking forward to it, but she saw it as a transition to another state of being, and I tried to use that in the film."

The show is much too long, but TLC fans will get a recap of the group's career, along with footage of Lopes growing up in Philadelphia, and plenty of her beliefs about numerology, astrology and herbal dieting. Perhaps more of the latter than you want to see. We're thinking of the scene in which she forces members of an aspiring girl group who've come along on the retreat to drink her foul-tasting concoctions, until one of them says, "Sorry," and vomits on camera.

Lopes was at her best onstage, where her mugging and impish personality were framed by the restrictions of a four-minute song. She wrote the rap parts of the group's 1990s string of hits (which were produced by LA Reid and Kenneth "Babyface" Edmonds) and provided the group's edginess. On their 1994 disc, "CrazySexyCool," Lopes was the "crazy" one.

It wasn't entirely an act. As she reflects on film, she burned Rison's house amid a series of violent arguments about fidelity. As a means of proclaiming her love for him, she carved "Love" into her forearm with a razor while serving time in alcohol rehab after that incident. When he didn't visit her as often as she wanted -- this just after she burned his house down -- she carved "Hate" over it.

"Look how nice it came out," she says at one point in the retreat, holding up her arm for the camera.

As the show progresses, the degree of her narcissism and turbulent thought patterns becomes achingly clear. She's riding in a car that hits and kills a 10-year-old boy, and her analysis of this tragedy is that a spirit chasing her killed the boy instead. She holds up the dead boy's shoes for the camera and muses that his name was Lopez, like hers. A clip of her on MTV a year or so before her death shows her proudly describing the 40-day fast she's on as part of her "self-cleansing" regimen. What was most clear was how ill she looked.

This was clearly a talented, troubled young woman who needed serious counseling, not to be playing nude in the Honduran rain forest, talking about how she always wanted to be "in the jungle, naked, friends with all the animals."

It's a pity she never found the peace she so clearly sought. Instead, we have her life, loss, fame and early demise all caught on film.

Truly, sadly, the way things are now.

Big City, Bright Lights... Help Me, Yo!

Dear Intelligent and...Not-so Intelligent Readers:

Your boy will be going to Las Vegas for the weekend. I'm going to cut to the chase: I want to win money!

I'm sure that someone out there has been to Vegas and has some tips for the kid on what games to play and tips on winning big. So to any and all Intelligent Ignorance readers that can put me onto some game, please drop some knowledge on me.

In addition, please share any suggestions on sites, clubs, corners, curbs, bathroom stalls etc. that I ABSOLUTELY have to visit while I'm there.

Your suggestions and comments will be greatly appreciated (or despised if I come home broke...don't do that to me).

Love,


Brandon

50 Exposed...Only Shot 3 Times

I ran across this tidbit on another blog. I'm not really one to speak on disposable news, but I couldn't pass this one up. Apparently, research has shown that 50 Cent was only shot 3 times, as opposed to the 9 times that he so heavily claims. Check out the above police report and article written on 5/14/2000 (before the 50 Cent campaign began) confirming him getting shot only 3 times.

Now don't get me wrong-- getting shot once is bad enough, but there is a big difference between getting hit 3 times vs. 9 times. In a culture dominated by street credibility, I guess 50 Cent (who borrowed the name from a deceased neighborhood hitman of the same name) wanted to capitalize off of the experience and use the bigger number for marketing purposes. It worked!

What baffles me, however, is how he has become wildly successful by rapping about shooting and killing more people in the streets than Rambo, yet he's famous for being a victim of gunfire and not actually really shooting anybody. Seems a little ironic to me.

I guess to that kid in surburbia, it's really neato to go on a ghetto safari by purchasing a glossy, celophane-wrapped record of a real, live crack dealer from da streets whose "bullets will splatter your brains all over the sidewalk." Not to mention the fact that he was shot 9 times! Wow! He's REALLY Hard!

Hey guys...how about everybody come over to my house this weekend. We'll shoot each other once, tell everybody that we were shot 6 times, and then become rappers!

Who's with me????

Ignorance: The above post

Masturbation... It's OOOOO-TAY!

This post comes from a good female friend of mine that we'll call serialblogger. In it, she poses the question of why is masturbation so taboo? Please share your thoughts.

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Masturbation is one of those things that people talk about but supposedly noone does. One would think that since the turn of the sexual revolution it would be more commonplace to talk about and not just when it involves humiliating someone else. We live in an age where there is a market that longs to fulfill the sexual desire of any person without the need of a partner. From toys and props to pornography down to good old fashion KY, (or Jergens for those men who won't admit they use lube); the fact is that there are venues and outlets for anyone who is looking to have a good old fashion time with themselves. So why is it that there is still a sense of public shame when it comes to the act of self love?

Masturbation is OK! As a matter of fact, it's the safest sex that you could ever have. You should only question it's usefulness if it starts to interfere with...say, your livelihood. If you are spending a lot of your time masturbating and it is interfering with your school work, your job, or the rest of your life, only then might you want to stop and think about why you are doing it so much. A person can become obsessed with anything.

Let's face it, this is something that we have all tried at one point in time of our lives, and for some it has become a ritual as regular as brushing our teeth and washing our face; but for others it is an event that comes sparsely and is followed by extreme feelings of guilt and shame. Is it a cultural thing that tells us that sex is private and to admit that we masturbate would be divulging too much info into one's personal life?

If at some point during the course of reading this post you got the urge to touch yourself or remembered that you didn't get your daily dose of 5 on 1 contact, please make sure you clean up after yourself. It's just the courteous thing to do. Thanks.

Now if you'll excuse me...

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Ignorance: "They call it a Rabbit because... it just jump all up and down ON the clitoris." -Alexyss Tylor

Back on the Grind

My apologies... work and a final has kept me busy. I'll have a post up tomorrow morning. Thanks for your continued support.

-Brandon a.k.a. alwayshitsthebottom

Who Runs Hip Hop?

Damn... I knew that this Imus situation would open the flood gates of criticism on hip-hop. It's definately taking a beating right now. But, personally, I think it's way over due. Rap has become a modern day minstrel show of repetitive hooks, violence and misogyny. I definately support freedom of speech, but it seems that record companies are only shoving the ignorant side of rap down the throats of the kids that they target (it's not even spoon feeding anymore).

On the heels of getting chewed out by Oprah and friends, Russell Simmons asked the RIAA to place a ban on the words "nigga, ho, and bitch" in music played over the airwaves. This proposal would force rappers to actually change their lyrics and not just use "bleeps or muting" of those words when singles are played on public airwaves. This does not include censorship on actual records.

I actually agree with this move, but for the most part this is already in place. While I commend him for taking that step to ask, it won't happen; and even if it does, it doesn't get to the root of the problem, which is not the artists making the records, but the companies that seek out the artists willing to make these types of records for pay.

The problem isn't the Rich Boy's, 3-6 Mafias, and Young Jeezy's, but rather the Lyor Cohens, Jimmy Iovines, and Tom Silvermans. These are the guys that control the purse and have the real power to make change. They are the ones who pay the black psuedo-moguls, that pay the rappers to rap about illegal and destructive wet dreams. Most of these rappers never lived what they talk about and only do so because they are under pressure to follow trends to make money. If these guys started paying and heavily promoting book worms to make rap records, SAT scores in inner city schools would see a steep surge, and rappers like Jeezy would start rapping about Algebra.

Notice that Russell Simmons was left out of that generalization of people with power. Whenever someone needs to defend rap, he's put on front street to take the heat. But does he have any real juice? I always assumed that Russell ran shit. I stumbled upon an article recently that calls out the names of the real moguls that run rap. And, you guessed it... only one of them looks like Russell.

Check it out...

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With the one possible exception of Percy “Master P” Miller there is no such person as a black Hip Hop mogul. Puffy ain’t one, neither is Andre Harrell, nor Rush(Russell Simmons), nor Andre “Dr Dre” Young, and Marion “Suge” Knight especially was never a mogul. Neither is Shawn “Jay Z” Carter, his ex-sidekick Damon Dash, or Jermaine Dupri or even Bob Johnson. All these folks might be rich, but they sure are no moguls.

Now Jack Warner, he was a mogul. Ahmed Ertegun, that was a (mini) mogul. David Geffen is a mogul.So is there such a thing as a Hip Hop mogul? Of course, there are quite a few of them. Here’s the list: Clive Davis, Rick Rubin, Lyor Cohen, Steve Gottlieb, Jimmy Iovine, Ted Fields, Doug Morris, Mel Lewinter, Edgar Bronfman, Jr., Sumner Redstone, Percy Miller. Then there’s the Hip Hop ueber-mogul, attorney Paul Schindler, and his sidekick, business manager Burt Padell.

Ok. So what about the black record industry pioneers of Hip Hop. Any there? Well, maybe Sylvia Robinson in the late 1970’s, but that was over in a heartbeat. The real Hip Hop record pioneers? There you have them: William Socolov, Arthur Russell (Sleeping Bag Records), Rick Rubin (Def Jam Recordings), Steve Plotniki and Corey Robbins (Profile Records), Jerry Allen (BDP Records), Tom Silverman (Tommy Boy Records), maybe even Hiroshi Matsuo (Pallas Records). None of them black, one is Japanese. Oh, and let’s not forget Arthur Baker (Fat Boys), and the late Steve Salem.

And no no no. Russell Simmons did not co-found Def Jam. Nor did he ever run Def Jam. Rick Rubin ran Def Jam. Later Lyor Cohen ran Def Jam. Nor did Russell ever sign Def Jam’s big acts. LL Cool J? Rick Rubin. The Beastie Boys? Rick Rubin. Public Enemy? Rick Rubin. Oran “Juice” Jones? Lyor Cohen. So what was Russell’s claim to fame? Simple, Rush is the house that Joey built. Russell is Joey “Run” Simmons’ brother. That Rev. Run (oh, boy "Rev." Now, that's a whole other story) of Run-DMC fame. That’s what made Rick Rubin decide to open the door for Russell.

Ah, but Run-DMC. Now that’s a black owned and controlled group!?!? Nope. Produced by: Rick Rubin. Record company: Profile Records, (Cory Robbins and Steve Plotniki). Management: Rush Artist Management run by…Lyor Cohen. Publicist: Bill Adler. Black? Nope, nice guy, but absolutely not black.Ok, their attorneys were black. Right? Nope. Grubman, Indursky and Schindler. Not black. Black business management? Nope Burt Padell. Not black.Then, … ah, but, but, but at least their booking agents were black, right? Naw. Norby Walters (aka Norby Meyers), Cara Lewis, not black. (Cara, being a red head, is definitely not black). Public Enemy, in their heyday? Record Company: Def Jam. Not black. Rush Management, not black, Norby Walters Agency, Pyramid Agency, William Morris Agency, (Cara Lewis) not black. Publicist: Bill Adler.BDP (Scott la Rock, Kris Parker and Scottie Morris), Record Company: BDP Records: Not black. Attorney (Jay Kramer), not black, management (Jay Kramer), not black.

On another note, people forget that Master P REALLY is a master.
First rapper to own 100% of his Masters
First and only rapper/CEO to receive 85% of profits in a major deal
Has sold 75 million records as an independent CEO
First rapper to be worth over $100 million
First rapper to be worth over $300 million
Suffice it to say he is one SMART COOKIE! Neither Jay, Diddy, nor Russell have accomplished those BY THEMSELVES!

Is Texting Lame?

So the other night I was texting a female friend of mine. It went something like this:

Me: *tap tap tap tap tap*
"Are you going to be around later?"

Response:
"I'll be around after 11"

Me: *tap tap tap tap tap tap tap*
"Holla at me when you're free"

Response:
"OK... guess what happened to me today?"

Me: *tap tap*
"What's that?"

Response:
"I was at the mall earlier and I ran into (insert name). She had the nerve to walk right past me and not speak. I was so pissed"

Me: *tap tap tap*
"That sucks. Get at me when you're free"

Response:
"I know right? I am not gonna let that ruin my day. I mean we've known each other forever and she's gonna turn around and do me like that? Blah blah blah blah words words words words words blah blah"

This exchange took no less than 30 minutes...

I must admit that I have fallen victim to texting culture. It's much easier to send a quick message to someone and get a quick message back than to call them and get bogged down in an hour-long conversation where getting off the phone with that person is cumbersome and awkward. But here lately, I've found that people (me included) are having full conversations through text.

Between text messaging, instant messenger and the Facebook, people can get away with hardly ever physically communicating with other people. Now admit it, thirty-minute conversations of texting, and not physically talking, can get pretty ridiculous. It may seem like a subtle way of contacting your friends or new love interest, but people are supposed to text because they are too busy to call — a one paragraph response requires much more time and effort than hitting send and opening your mouth.

Now don't get me wrong, texting definately has its place: discreet messages when you're in meetings/class, trying to find someone you know in a loud and crowded club, one-way communications, avoiding talking to a long-winded person, and of course, the 3AM booty call. Other than these reasons, having a full conversation over text is lame.

Are you a chronic texter? Do you think that texting is lame or do you think it's the next best thing since Krispy Kreme? Ladies... what do you think about guys that only send you text messages?

**Majestic music plays in background**

I PROCLAIM THAT FROM THIS DAY FORTH, I SHALL SEND NO MORE THAN 4 TEXTS TO ONE SINGLE PERSON DURING A TEXT EXCHANGE BEFORE I PICK UP THE PHONE AND PHYSICALLY CALL THEM! AND IT IS SO...

Public Access Television: Dr. Sista' Girl Tells You How to Get That Thang!

This is what happens when a chick that got turned out and played back in the day goes to school and gets her Ph.D. in Sexology. Funnnnn-ty! Shouts out to anonymous for the link.

Ignorance: "What's that Jack Rabbit You Talkin' bout?... I thought that Jack Rabbits supposed to jump from here to there!"

At Her Best...

Andrew the AssHole Says: Get Cosmetic Surgery

Is getting cosmetic surgery OK? Does your physical appearance determine your worth? Andrew the AssHole weighs in on the topic. What do you think?

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Brazilian women are arguably some of the most beautiful women in the world. They come in all flavors from blonde hair, blue eyes to your chocolate brown. To top it off, their intoxicating accented whispers of “Ummm Papi!” in your ear makes them a commodity. Brazil is a hilly country and many people walk, so their bodies are normally fit. I recently found out that they are manufactured beauties. Brazil spends more money per capita for physical appearance than anywhere in the world.

This brings me to the subject of cosmetic surgery. Some may think this is a shallow way to spend money, but I beg to differ. Don't think this only applies to women, Men should go get fixed as well. Don't feel like going to the gym 4x's a week? Buy a chest. If you frown all the time, get a face lift. Maybe your girl didn't leave you because you weren't listening, but because you couldn't give her any “Act-Right” (Good Sex). Enlarge your penis!

Many studies have been done to prove that sexually desired people make more money than the undesirable. Even if you make $50K and the difference is 10%, that's a $200K over your working career. At a $20K investment that is a 1000% return on investment. Not to mention the fringe benefits of looking good. Your teacher gives you better grades through school. Your boss lets you take longer lunches, and don't forget all the free dinners and gifts you get for looking good.

Cosmetic surgery will increase your self-esteem. The higher your self-esteem, the happier and easier your life will be. So if nature didn't make you perfect, get help by getting fixed. You already do it with diet pills and hair products, why not take the next step?

Check out Andrew's blog at memoirsofanasshole.blogspot.com