Child of Hip Hop

I can remember it like it was yesterday. My momma, my sister and I
went to Candler Road flee market. I stopped at the first bootleg music
stand, excited to cop my first piece of music with my own money.
Before this, it was shit that I borrowed from friends and shit that I
recorded off the radio. Dude was having a 2 for $10 sale so I browsed
around, looking for one thing in particular...and whatever else
tickled my fancy. I left an hour later with Goodie MOB's Soul Food and
Too Short's Gettin' It. Cassette tapes, of course.

I was eleven years old then. Fifteen years later and there are few
things I look forward to more than hopping in the Impala, shooting
over to Best Buy and copping that new Jay-Z or that new Outkast or
that new Nas. I've got an ongoing love affair with hip hop. And I
don't see it ending anytime soon. No matter how old I get. My tastes
may change. But not my love of the artform. And here's why...

Through hip hop, I've made a lot of friends. Good friends. Close
friends. Whenever I'm riding high off of something I've accomplished,
feeling myself too much, my nigga Jay-Z comes along and reminds me
that 'success is like lust...it's good to the touch...it's good for
the moment...but it's never enough'. When this kid Doug that I went to
school with was pushing my buttons, my man Styles reminded me to 'show
him ya gentleman first. If he don't respect that, then show him ya
gangsta!'. When I'm procrastinating on shit I know I need to get done,
Pimp lets me know that 'one day ya here, next day ya gone'. So I get
busy building my legacy.

Hip hop speaks to me; and I speak back.

A few weeks ago when m Michael Jackson died, I saw a lot of people on
television crying. Apparently they we so touched by Michael Jackson's
music that they felt that their lives would never be the same. Me? It
took me by surprise at first. But a few hours later, I was over it. In
fact I was irritated that coverage of his death seemed to be on every
channel that I turned to. I was 13 when Tupac got shot the second
time. I remember coming home from basketball practice everyday, and
turning on the news, sure I'd see that he had come out of his coma. I
figured it was only a matter of time before he was back to his old
self and making records a out how 'real niggas don't die!'. When he
died, it fucked me up for a while. I had lost a friend; someone I
could lean on when times were tough. Michael Jackson might have been
the 'King of Pop' but Pac affected me on deeper level. The power of
hip hop.

No other artform is more taylor-made for people like me. People who
came from little or nothing. Underdogs who are determined to make
something of themselves. The love affair has been burning hot for a
long time. And it won't be cooling off anytime soon.

HIP HOP LYRIC OF THE DAY

I'm in my 20's so a new Nas joint used to give me the chills!
-Joell Ortiz, 'This is hip hop'

Test to see if mobile blogging works

From my iPhone to infinity!!!!!

Been a while.

Hello world. Haven't blogged in a minute. And, boy, has a lot happened. I guess the most obvious would be the birth of my son, Aj. Long story short, my better half woke up with crazy strong contractions at about 2am on June 8th. 27 hours, 3 shifts of nurses, 2 midwives, 3 failed epidurals and 3 anesthesiologists (did I spell that right, Brenna?) later, my son was born. 7 lbs, 3 oz's, 19 inches. It was quite a sobering experience. One that I will never forget. My son is lying right next to me on the couch, and I am realizing that he is simultaneously my greatest accomplishment and my biggest challenge. That's all I'll say about that.

I guess the next biggest thing that has happened in my life is the fact that I got a promotion and a raise at work. First of all, let me express how much I love my job. It is literally the only job that I have ever had that i enjoy getting up and going to everyday. The importance of that facet cannot be understated. When I started at Apple last May, I decided that I would put my all into the job and see where it took me. What I'm getting in return is a stable career (at least until I sell a screenplay!) and a sense of accomplishment everyday when I get off that I have never had before. I'm excited about my future at Apple. That's all I'll say about that.

I am also rediculously excited about my upcoming trip to Atlanta at the end of the year. I haven't been home since 2005 and I can imagine how much the city has changed since then. Also, I'm excited to introduce KT to Atlanta, as she has never been. I keep telling her that she'll find it...interesting. She doesn't really understand what I mean. But she'll get it when we touch down. I've been trying to coordinate a get-together with all my boys. Hopefully, they can all make it to Atlanta and we can see each other. I have a feeling it probably won't happen again, with most of us getting married, having kids, buying houses, etc. We'll see. I'm excited to see if any of them have stepped their Monopoly game. Cause as I recall, I still have the crown on my head!  That's all I'll say about that.

I haven't been able to write a word in a month. I haven't really gotten myself on any real schedule as far as work, writing taking care of my house and taking care of my son. I've learned the hard way that something has to give. And it looks like that thing will have to be...sleep. I've been experimenting with getting some writing done while I am up in the middle of the night feeding Aj and trying to get him back to sleep (like I am right now). IT's looking promising. But we'll see how it turns out. That's all I'll say about that.

That's pretty much it, people. Until next time...

HIP HOP LYRIC OF THE DAY

Bang bang, nigga let's get it on/ I've always been a monster but it's worse now that my son's been born

-Sheek