Hip-Hop
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Rap Battles
The battle in hip-hop is an art form all to itself. In a freestyle battle, two rappers compete against each other in order to deliver the best rhymes. The object of the battle is to deliver funny and witty rhymes that tear down your opponent. Some emcees will write rhymes and practice them just for…
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Best & Worst of 2007
Here it is. My year-end Best & Worst list. THE BEST OF 2007 Best new T.V. show – Torchwood My favourite T.V. shows on the air right now all debuted last season. I have tried watching some of the new shows this season but there aren’t really many that capture my interest. I didn’t stick…
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Rap Music Isn’t Music
I come across this mind state all the time. This latest instance was at a small Christmas get together at a colleague’s house. Almost everyone there was a teacher. I was in one of those small conversations that start up at these things. There was a first year teacher, a high school principal, a veteran…
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Inner City Visions
I caught a show this weekend called Make Some Noise. It was an amazing show about young Canadians who have done some extraordinary things to make a difference in the world. I saw an inspiring segment about a young man who started up a recreation centre. He had a unique vision and appropriately named the…
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Music Space Issues
Like I said yesterday, I have issues when it comes to organizing my music. I have vinyl records, cassette tapes, and CDs. Each format of music that I own is organized in its own way. My records are in old milk crates or recycling bins. These containers are great for storing records and make it…
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Hip Hop in Final Jeopardy
The night before last, I was watching Jeopardy as I often do. The Final Jeopardy category was sports documentaries. The clue said something to the effect that “He was cited as creating “rap” in the 1960s in an ESPN documentary .” Huh? What? I know the history of hip hop and I know where it…
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Always a Scapegoat
Hip Hop gets made out to be a scapegoat a lot. Last night though, I laughed out loud at the latest problem that someone pointed the finger at this genre of music that I will forever champion. I was channel surfing and flipped onto MTV Live (Canada). They were talking about environmental issues in a…
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Best Concerts Ever!
I can’t resist a great concert. Music is meant to be experienced live. CDs, and radio are great but nothing is better than live music. Hamilton is a great city for musical events. When I was a teenager and young adult, I would go out to shows every weekend. It was amazing. Unfortunately, I don’t…
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Make a Difference
Music Videos are great. I can sit there and watch them for hours. And I did just that on the weekend. I flipped around from Much Music, BET, and Much Vibe for a few hours and then kept Much Vibe on as I did housework. I caught a great video from DL Incognito called “Make…
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Hip Hop at the Emmys
The Emmy Awards were on television last night and they tried a few new things in the telecast. They had the cast of each show sitting together encircling a round stage. It was an interesting concept that didn’t really seem to work. The show looked great on television but half of the audience was always…