30 Is The New Nothing, Do It How It Is Supposed To Be Done

Sitting on the train last week with a friend of mine and everyone else in the Metro area got me to thinking. There is a major difference in the generations. Even the few years age difference between adolescent, teen, young adult, adult, and mid-but-not-middle aged adults can render drastic changes and differences in the style and development of the person(s). This got my friend and me thinking and we came to the conclusion that we aren’t young anymore. And things need to change with the time, mainly our wardrobe.

The music genre of rap nowadays by any stretch of the imagination lacks just that, an imagination. Skinny jeans have to be the worse fashion statement in all of the land. Like Jamie Foxx said, I need room for my “Boa”(And it is a Boa, probably even Anaconda-ish. You should have seen a pic I took this weekend, I was like 'Man, I'm blessed and I'm not even excited'.) Women need to look like women and act like women. Curves and nicely done hair with subtle accents that complements their face structure. Clothes that hint at the curvaceous and often time voluptuous hips, thighs and chest that men like myself love so much. And, most importantly, cognac that doesn’t burn the mouth upon tasting; rather, just lays on your tongue like a summer’s night with the breeze of an ancient wind with the flowers filling the air with a restrained yet powerful aroma that puts your mind at ease as you gaze upon the heavens and stars with a flickering fire burning oak wood in front of you…But, I digress. The Wardrobe.

As men hovering around the 30 year old mark we need certain clothes for certain situations. First, and foremost, men need a suit at least one(1) but if possible two(2). You need “Ole Faithful” the black suit. It fits any occasion and you will not stick out and look out of place or character. It fits interviews, church, funerals, semi-formal events, etc. The second suit should be either a neutral brownish color or a gray suit. This will be versatile also in the time of need.

Second, men should have at least five (5) pair of slacks. Every occasion doesn’t call for a suit but it might call for slacks. We all now the business casual events and even work that call for men to wear slacks. The slacks are versatile and can be worn with a polo shirt, button down shirt and even a nice t-shirt if accessorized correctly. That brings me to my next point. Men need, at least - if possible, to double the amount of slacks you have with button down shirts. You need to be able to interchange them with the slacks to make your wardrobe appear to be larger than it really is. With this, though, comes the tie. Four (4) ties, everyone knows Friday’s are casual.

The casual side of the man needs several (?) polo shirts. This is another versatile piece of clothing. It can be worn with slacks, khakis, and jeans. Hopefully, get some that go well with all. Jeans are necessary also. At this age we aren’t wearing them as much so we don’t need that many. Maybe four (4) pair. Every man has his favorite pair of jeans from about five years ago so ladies don’t even bother him on these. Some jeans for lounging around are in order, a pair of nice jeans for happy hour or the lounge. Lastly, another for the same reason just stated.

A few (47) t-shirts are needed for lounging and the occasional fashion statement when you feel like being bold. Don’t forget your shorts, jeans, khaki and sportswear (basketball). In addition you need shoes, dress (black, of course) and another to match your other suit and slacks, casual and some sneakers for the exercise that is needed in all men's lives.

Accessories are needed too, watches, cuff links, socks, handkerchiefs, etc. There are many accessories but these are the only that are necessary.

I don’t follow these rules but other men hovering around 30 should. It is just a guideline it’s not set in stone…What? Like you follow the speed limit all the time. If you have any suggestions feel free to comment.

Another Legend Gone Too Soon, We'll miss you Billy D

S-DUB HERE FOR NO SHEPHERDS FOR SHEEPLE!!!!

It doesn’t quite sound the same. If you are living under a rock, I am sorry I am the bearer of horrible news. The tremendous and irreplaceable pitchman Billy Mays, has died. He was born William Darrell "Billy" Mays, Jr. or “Billy D” as I affectionately called him, but known to most as Billy Mays. I was shocked and hurt when I found out the news. It seemed unreal. It was too much to take for me and I just lost it. On Sunday morning after recovering from a long night out on the town with friends, and old friends at a function that will remain nameless do to the lackluster effort given to the event, I went to brunch and was feasting on a shrimp omelet, when the bad news was delivered.

The world was and still is grieving the loss of Ed McMahon, Farrah Fawcett and of course the King of Pop, Michael Joseph Jackson. HHOOOOOOHHHHHHHH!! It hurts to even think about it. And to top it off on Sunday morning we get more bad news. I know for me, it was hurtful and shocking. I could and would joyfully and expectantly wait for Billy Mays to wake me in the wee hours of Saturday (and even sometimes Sunday) morning.

After a spirit-filled evening out to celebrate the weekend, most of you would fall into a coma-like sleep and not wake up until after most restaurants stop serving breakfast or later the next morning/afternoon. I, on the other hand, had the wonderful experience of having Billy Mays personally wake me in the middle of the night to remind me to go to bed. It would be automatic, I come home and trip through the door over something that either was or wasn’t suppose to be there and plop down on the couch to watch the re-airing of SportsCenter for the 4^th time while eating my “fourth meal”. After channel surfing I would probably settle on something less than educational and fall asleep. And just like clockwork around 3am Billy would come through and in his smooth and hypnotic voice would yell at me “BILLY MAYS HERE FOR OXI CLEAN/ MIGHT PUTTY/SIMONZ FIX IT/GRATER PLATER/MIGHTY MENDIT/ FLIES AWAY…!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!” It was time to go to bed when Billy Mays came through. And I have him to thank for countless mornings of waking on time, no or small cricks in my neck (whatever a crick is), or even not having my lady mad at me for not coming to bed. What a friend he is, or worse yet, was (Man, this is hard) for keeping me from countless hard times.

Upon arriving home from brunch with my shrimp omelet, which was succulent and oh so tasty by the way, I was hungry again and headache almost gone. I decided to eat the rest of my food and have some Cabernet Sauvignon to…you know put me at ease, just a taste to level me out. Unfortunately, I became just so distraught after watching the Man in the mirror video for the 17^th time this weekend, I threw the bottle across the room and it shattered on my beige-ish brown microfiber couch. Boy, what a mess it was. I tried immediately to use soap and water just like my grandmother taught me. But, it needed something stronger. Of course, you guessed it, Oxi Clean. I was putting some elbow grease into it too but it just wouldn’t come out. It needed, of course you guessed it again, more Oxi Clean. Thank the Lord for Billy Mays again because he got me to buy 1 and even gave me 2 ½ more of it for free.

Now, I’m going to try and get in touch with his wife to let her know how much Billy meant to me. And if she calls me in the next 30 days, I’ll even throw in a free bottle of Cabernet Sauvignon so she can possibly enjoy Billy as I did.

This is tough but we’ll get through it together. I don’t know who is going to wake me in the wee hours of the morning anymore. But in the event you decide to give me a call or even want Billy Mays to wake you every weekend just play the first five seconds of this wonderful video of Billy D aka Billy Mays.

Some De La for Dela's Dad...

Since it's finally starting to feel like summer outside and there's some talk of a Nationals game this weekend... Oh and father's day is this sunday. I figured I would throw another log on the nostalgia fire. Here ya go... some rare, not so rare De La Soul remixes and B-sides.

1. They Dont Know That, Soul
2. Ego Trippin Part Three
3. Getting Down at the Amphitheater Ft Common
4. Sh.Fe. Mcs Ft A Tribe Called Quest
5. Stix and Stonez ft Grand Master Flash
6. Double Huey Skit
7. The Projects - Handsomeboy Modeling School
8. If It wasnt for you
9. Trouble in the Water ft Dj Honda
10. Piles and Piles Demo
11. More Than U Know
12. I Cant Call It
13. The Hustle
14. Itz Soweezee (Hot Remix)
15. The Bizness (Vinyl Reanimators Remix)
16. Sweet Dreams
17. Stay Away
18. Thru Ya City

Stakes Is High Remixes

19. Remix 1 ( I think its just an alternate mix by De La)
20. Dj Spinna Remix
21. Jay Dee Remix
22. 9th Wonder Remix
23. Instrumental (Original Mix)

Download part one / part two

Left til my Death

A Historical Keepsake?!

Newscoma posted details of a racist emailsent from Sherri Goforth, legislative aid forSen. Diane Black (R-Gallatin). The email depicts the Presidents of the United States with President Barack Obama as a pair of eyes in a black background.

Make the next Left.

I walk on skulls, so I am two steps ahead

Almost 13 years ago, Ras Kass one of the most slept on MC's in history released his debut, October 1, 1996 to be exact. Recently Ras Kass was released from prison from a parole violation. So in recognition of that, let us revisit Soul on Ice... Most people know of this album for the epic "Nature of the Threat." While Nature of the Threat is undoubtedly a standout, Ras Kass delivers timeless lyrics throughout the entire project. If you missed it the first time, let somebody borrow it and never saw it again, or just like downloading stuff check it out...

Soul on Ice LP

Left in shambles

You ought to know: Gil Scott Heron Edition

One of the most important progenitors of rap music, Gil Scott-Heron's aggressive, no-nonsense street poetry inspired a legion of intelligent rappers while his engaging songwriting skills placed him square in the R&B charts later in his career, backed by increasingly contemporary production courtesy of Malcolm Cecil and Nile Rodgers(of Chic). Born in Chicago but transplanted to Tennessee for his early years, Scott-Heron spent most of his high-school years in the Bronx, where he learned firsthand many of the experiences which later made up his songwriting material. He had begun writing before reaching his teenage years, however, and completed his first volume of poetry at the age of 13. Though he attended college in Pennsylvania, he dropped out after one year to concentrate on his writing career and earned plaudits for his novel, The Vulture. Encouraged at the end of the '60s to begin recording by legendary jazz producer Bob Thiele -- who had worked with every major jazz great, from Louis Armstrong to John Coltrane -- Scott-Heron released his 1970 debut, Small Talk at 125th and Lenox, inspired by a volume of poetry of the same name. With Thiele's Flying Dutchman Records until the mid-'70s, he signed to Arista soon after and found success on the R&B charts. Though his jazz-based work of the early '70s was tempered by a slicker disco-inspired production, Scott-Heron's message was as clear as ever on the Top 30 single "Johannesburg" and the number 15 hit "Angel Dust." Silent for almost a decade, after the release of his 1984 single "Re-Ron," the proto-rapper returned to recording in the mid-'90s with a message for the gangsta rappers who had come in his wake; Scott-Heron's 1994 album Spirits began with "Message to the Messengers," pointed squarely at the rappers whose influence -- positive or negative -- meant much to the children of the 1990s.

In a touching bit of irony which he himself was quick to joke about, Gil Scott-Heron was born on April Fool's Day 1949 in Chicago, the son of a Jamaican professional soccer player (who spent time playing for Glasgow Celtic) and a college-graduate mother who worked as a librarian. His parents divorced early in his life, and Scott-Heron was sent to live with his grandmother in Lincoln, TN. Learning musical and literary instruction from her, Scott-Heron also learned about prejudice firsthand, as he was one of three children picked to integrate an elementary school in nearby Jackson. The abuse proved to much to bear, however, and the eighth-grader was sent to New York to live with his mother, first in the Bronx and later in the Hispanic neighborhood of Chelsea.

Though Scott-Heron's experiences in Tennessee must have been difficult, they proved to be the seed of his writing career, as his first volume of poetry was written around that time. His education in the New York City school system also proved beneficial, introducing the youth to the work of Harlem Renaissance poet Langston Hughes as well as LeRoi Jones. After publishing a novel called The Vulture in 1968, Scott-Heron applied to Pennsylvania's Lincoln University. Though he spent less than one year there, it was enough time to meet Brian Jackson, a similarly minded musician who would later become a crucial collaborator and integral part of Scott-Heron's band. Given a bit of exposure -- mostly in magazines like Essence, which called The Vulture "a strong start for a writer with important things to say" -- Scott-Heron met up with Bob Thiele and was encouraged to begin a music career, reading selections from his book of poetry Small Talk at 125th & Lennox while Thiele recorded a collective of jazz and funk musicians, including bassist Ron Carter, drummer Bernard "Pretty" Purdie, Hubert Laws on flute and alto saxophone, and percussionists Eddie Knowles and Charlie Saunders; Scott-Heron also recruited Jackson to play on the record as pianist. Most important on the album was "The Revolution Will Not Be Televised," an aggressive polemic against the major media and white America's ignorance of increasingly deteriorating conditions in the inner cities. Scott-Heron's second LP, 1971's Pieces of a Man, expanded his range, featuring songs such as the title track and "Lady Day and John Coltrane" which offered a more straight-ahead approach to song structure (if not content).

The following year's Free Will was his last for Flying Dutchman, however; after a dispute with the label, Scott-Heron recorded Winter in America for Strata East, then moved to Arista Records in 1975. As the first artist signed to Clive Davis' new label, much was riding on Scott-Heron to deliver first-rate material with a chance at the charts. Thanks to Arista's more focused push on the charts, Scott-Heron's "Johannesburg" reached number 29 on the R&B charts in 1975. Important to Scott-Heron's success on his first two albums for Arista (First Minute of a New Day and From South Africa to South Carolina) was the influence of keyboardist and collaborator Brian Jackson, co-billed on both LPs and the de facto leader of Scott-Heron's Midnight Band.

Jackson left by 1978, though, leaving the musical direction of Scott-Heron's career in the capable hands of producer Malcolm Cecil, a veteran producer who had midwifed the funkier direction of the Isley Brothers and Stevie Wonder earlier in the decade. The first single recorded with Cecil, "The Bottle," became Scott-Heron's biggest hit yet, peaking at number 15 on the R&B charts, though he still made no waves on pop charts. Producer Nile Rodgers of Chic also helped on production during the 1980s, when Scott-Heron's political attack grew even more fervent with a new target, President Ronald Reagan. (Several singles, including the R&B hits "B Movie" and "Re-Ron," were specifically directed at the President's conservative policies.) By 1985, however, Scott-Heron was dropped by Arista, just after the release of The Best of Gil Scott-Heron. Though he continued to tour around the world, Scott-Heron chose to discontinue recording. He did return, however, in 1993 with a contract for TVT Records and the album Spirits.

Gils Scott Heron - The Revolution will not be Televised (early version).

Yo ass gon get Left

Kyri*s... it means ¿&%^#$!@? in Spanish

Kyri*s Bio

Kyri*s (Pronounced k-eye-ree-ohs) is a thirty-seven part instrumental
band consisting of DJs, producers and musicians that span from Japan
to the Americas on to Europe. The members come from all walks of life
and contribute different aspects to the Kyri*s sound from programming
to live orchestration to inventing new programs for its members to
use. This is the ultimate musical thinktank and the music they produce
shows the varying degree. Another interesting fact about the group is
no one, not even the members themselves, know the names of their
bandmates--they communicate only through email and the Kyri*s message
board. There are no known photgraphs of the Kyri*s members and they do
no direct press so they are an enigma indeed.

The ...too busy dying to live EP is a product of 7 years worth of work
held to exacting standards and undoubtedly one of the most cinematic
gestures of our time. Each of the six instrumental tracks embody a
different ideal and have literally been sculpted into what you hear
now from hours of work. Not only are the tracks musically different,
even the very listening of each track is a unique experience because
with no label to answer to, the members made each recording decidely
fresh and not being "industry standard".

Culturally you'll find influences from across the globe here and the
rules of how music is made will be thrown out of the window as
unorthodox methods are used in it's stead.

Kyri*s-"Bastion of Fat Women"
http://www.zshare.net/audio/6020222244bdad10/

Kyri*s ...too busy dying to live EP
http://www.zshare.net/download/6020259835ad730a/

Left nipples taste better...

I got soul and I'm superbad!

There really isn't much to say... I mean, it's James Brown! DJ Premier a legend in his own right put together a serious compilation of James Brown originals, and the Hip Hop classics that use his samples. So, get on the "good foot" and download this Rapidshare Download

Left to my devices

Krushing your head...Don't miss out

I'm posting this so no one can say that I didn't try.

DJ Krush is the shit. THE SHIT. Why? Because since 1997 this Japanese dude has been making beats that have no comparison. No one is in Krush's league save DJ Shadow, DJ Spooky or maybe Prefuse 73....maybe, and that's saying a lot. Musically he's unfuckwitable and is more Hiphop than you will ever be in your next million lifetimes; Dude is a legend. No bull.

Now since I know that many folks don't give a damn about any music (particularly dj music) that came out before the year 2000, I thought i'd include some other reasons to listen to a Krush album.


Listening to Krush will increase your cool points exponentially.

Listening to Krush means that you are part of a lineage of headphone zombies.

Listening to Krush means you are one eighth Japanese.

Listening to Krush means you no longer know what things are supposed to sound like.

Listening to Krush reduces fear and anxiety about what it means to be enlightened.

Listening to Krush teaches you to feel deeply.

Listening to Krush means you get high.

Listening to Krush makes you feel rich.

Listening to Krush is what all the hip socialists are listening to.



Not convinced...check this out.

This 3 DVD collection covers his impactful archive of music and video. Included are a documentary on the making of MIIIght, footage from the first ever album release party to the first tour in 1996, footage highlight sessions with Mos Def, CL Smooth, Kemuri, Shawn J. Period, and Kemuri, documentary on the making of Melso, DJ performance footage, live DJ set filmed in Tokyo, footage highlights sessions around Zen I & II, Jaku, Message At the Depth, and World Tour, and the complete music video collection for the first time ever on DVD featuring CL Smooth, Esthero, Zap Mama, KAN, Twiggy, and more.

From his landmark first album MEISO to his 2006 world tour, this set offers an epic recounting of the career of Japanese turntabalist DJ Krush. Included here are two documentaries–filled with behind-the-scenes footage from his tours and album recording sessions–as well as all of the atmospheric beat-maker’s music videos.
DOWNLOAD DVDRip 1
DOWNLOAD DVDRip 2
DOWNLOAD DVD 3