DAILY DOSE OF NICKI MINAJ
We’re at the end of Nicki Minaj! I can honestly say that I am sad to see her go. I am sad that Women’s History Month is about to end. Women have contributed greatly to society. Nicki Minaj stands on the shoulders of all those that stood up in the name of civil rights. As we close on Nicki, I want to thank the person that gave Nicki good advice. Had that person not been there, who knows where Nicki Minaj would be. I have had countless people in my life who have provided good advice and support to propel me forward. The most recent has been my mother. While she has always been a strong support, recently she has shown major love toward HipHop2020 and for that I am very grateful.
Daily Dose of Realness: Everyone needs support. As human beings we yearn for it. How you get it and where you get it from is up to you. In thinking about your life and work, who is a part of your support system? How are they supporting you? How is it contributing to your greatness? Maybe you should thank them...Happy Friday everyone. See you next week.
Competition. I love it. Executed properly, it can be one of the most healthy values. Balanced in its proper context, it can keep you at the top of your A-game, on the cutting edge of the next level, and the opposition knocking at your front door trying to figure out what you already figured out. Competition IS the game of life. And life IS a game my dear friends. To know this can make one work harder and smarter. To practice healthy competition is to be greater, more innovative. Most times when I launch projects, I think about all the people who will be affected; the lives that will be touched or changed in a more authentic way. To know that someone inspired me means that I can pass that inspiration on to the next person. And, to me, that’s the ultimate prize. So when an opponent comes on the scene to try and battle me. I think, “Competition? Why yes, I would love some.” My opponents’ challenge awakens me; they keep me on my toes. Especially when I see that they’re trying to jock my style. To battle is to be hip-hop. Just keep it friendly. We don’t want innocent people getting hurt.
Daily Dose of Realness: Competition. T-Mobile vs. AT&T. AT&T vs. Sprint. Competition. Jay-Z vs. Nas. Competition. Lil Kim vs. Nicki Minaj. Competition. The United States vs. global competitors. You vs. Whom? Which one of these qualifies as healthy battling? Competition can drive you to be more creative, more willing, more available to change the world. What are you competing for and who are your competitors?
Criticism. Most of us are familiar with it. Some people like you. Some people don’t. Some revere your work and others can’t stand it. There is positive criticism, and there’s negative criticism. Nicki Minaj, just as every successful woman, has experienced both. Fortunately, she uses it as indication that she is on the right path; that the order of the universe has lined up and her time is near. Actually, her time is here. But look at how she acknowledges more that her time is close versus the fact that she made it. I think making it is more about how long you last in the game and the quality of your work than how many albums you sell or your popularity. As we get close to the end of our focus on Miss Nicki Minaj, the question of her longevity tends to make up most of the conversations amongst my team and my class.
Making it last requires hard work and usually places a lot of responsibility on us. I am very familiar with hard work - both professional and personal hard work. And the criticism and rejection that comes from success makes the work even more difficult. Like Nicki, I have cried about some things and felt like a heavy burden was placed on me but eventually my nays became yays and I’m still climbing to the top. I don’t want to come off self-righteous like I got it together and don’t still experience the heaviness of wanting God to grant His promises...now. I do. But then I find comfort in knowing that spiritual order supercedes any and every plan I might have. In the end things fall into place on time, in line, and on rhyme.
The Daily Dose of Realness: How hard are you working? How hard are you working in your career or on your job? For love? For life? For your family? The things that matter most in life take time, hard work, and an unwavering belief in the things unseen. Keep working hard and keep working smart. This is the order of the Universe. God bless.
I like this verse today. Thanks once again to my Mind Squad for picking such a timely piece of lyric because last week I came down on Barack Obama for going into Libya. For the first time, I was open and honest about my criticisms against the way he was leading. For the life of me I just could not understand WHY we were in Libya. After listening to him address the American people last night, I think (and I say think while scratching my head) I have a better understanding of why Obama did what he did. Like Nicki says “it’s me in my time.” I think it’s Barack in his time. Does anyone remember the Rwandan massacres of 1994 that Bill Clinton ignored? In less that 100 days close to a million Rwandan people were killed, and the United States did not intervene. In an interview with Andrew Young, Clinton admits that ignoring the Rwandan civil wars was the greatest regret of his presidency. Obama called this Libyan strike “humanitarian.” He said that this invasion is not about “national security” but about “protecting our values and interests”. He assured us that Gaddafi’s military forces had been neutralized, Libyans were not going to be subjected to human target practice, and that this would not turn into an 8-year war as it did in Iraq. Ok. I get it Mr. President. To sit back and do nothing while people are getting slaughtered by their own kind requires no courage at all. And I guess Mr. Obama doesn’t want to wait too too long, do nothing, then look up and Gaddafi is killing his own. Perhaps. Maybe. The fact of the matter is that we live in a world where war and violence is sometimes necessary. Wow, I thought I’d never fix my mouth to even say something like that. Perhaps this is a good move for Obama that we will later realize. Did anyone other than me feel as though he was addressing the generation of young leaders? It felt like he was telling the old guard to bounce with the old perspectives about freedom, democracy, religion, and faith. He might as well said “I’m the best. Everything I tried to teach 'em they gon' see it in time.” Yeah we will definitely see won’t we?
The Daily Dose of Realness: Today in his presidential address, President Obama said that this new generation refuses to be denied rights. Like Nicki Minaj refuses to be denied of her rights as a woman, as a rapper, and as a creative being, the emerging generations around the world are sick of the old - Egypt and Libya are case points. They want justice and they want freedom. Today, think about your rights. Are you grateful for them? Or, do you deserve more?
Happy Monday Daily Dosers!! I hope today’s installment finds everyone off to a productive morning. Well, we are in our last week of March, which means we are on the tail end of Women’s History Month and 30 Days of Nicki Minaj. Oh what a month it has been! If I had to take one lesson for the month it is to not be afraid to unleash the dungeon dragon and take your “Moment 4 Life”. From hustling to fortune to gender norms and relationships with women, Nicki tackles it all. She definitely surprised me, and I’m glad to know there is a female rapper looking beyond rap. Hate her or love her, she is at the top of her A-game. Her creativity sets her apart from her counterparts. Her funny faces, weird voices, and outlandish wigs are on her road to success. She says somebody should invest now. Perhaps someone should. We did.
The Daily Dose of Realness: What is on your road to success? Are you at the top of your A-game? What sets you apart from others? The time to act, to be great, to live out your plan is now!! Can’t wait for people to hop on your bandwagon. Like Nicki said, people will never be ready. “Put on...[your]...cape and hit the sky.” Have a peaceful Monday.
Good morning everyone! I missed you all yesterday :-). This week has been an interesting one starting with Obama p’ing me off with this Libyan invasion, and ending happily with me speaking to the Kappa Boule about the significance of hip-hop pedagogy and The Daily Dose of Realness. It was quite a spirited conversation I had with the members of the oldest African American fraternity. One of the topics of our conversation centered around the values and ideals of my generation - particularly when it comes to money, how we spend, and what we do with it.
For example, Nicki makes it clear that she gets money; that she has made it. She has moved out of the hood and is now living "where the pools and the trees is" I can not be mad at her for moving. Most of us do not want to stay poor and in the ‘hood all of our lives, right? If we are so lucky to pull ourselves up by our own bootstraps, trust we are going to buy some property or move to the suburbs. Ironically a Republican hip-hop perspective, huh? Anyway... We cannot forget where we came from. And I do not think Nicki forgets as she always raps about Southside Jamaica Queens where she was raised.
On the flip side, in the verse for the day it seems as though Nicki disses poor people. Does she or am I trippin? I’m just saying I might get offended if I was honestly a "bum" or homeless person who happened to hear this verse. It also made me think about the concert she gave in her home of Trinidad and Tobago, which reportedly spent close to a million dollars on her show. What? When I heard this, I wondered why she didn’t give her home country - which is not a rich country - a free or reduced show? I mean, she said she loves her people.
The Daily Dose of Realness: So we get rich and move to the suburbs. Ok. There’s nothing wrong with that I suppose. Then we turn around and charge a poor country three-quarters of a million dollars for a concert? I don’t know about that one. What about the least of these? Those living under freeways and byways? What about the crusty broke bitches and the bums? (Nicki’s words, not mine). How do we help them? As you close out your week, thank God for His blessings. And as you head home after work, I challenge you to roll down your window while sitting on the exit ramp. Hand that homeless man or woman a dollar and a smile. It’ll make you and them feel good.
American dreaming. God speed. See you Monday.
Happy Wednesday everyone! It has been close to 48 hours since the Obama and Libya news was announced, and as you can see some people are not feeling Obama’s decision to attack. Or, let me say this, some are not feeling the fact that he did not consult with Congress more on the matter. Clearly Mr. President is privy to much more information than we will ever receive on CNN or BBC. Still, war is one of the “triple evils”, and we shouldn’t be in Libya right now. So while we sit back and watch this tragedy in Libya unfold - sadly witnessing our nation’s President approval rate sink - I think it’s time to keep it real about the problem of excessive materialism on the home front.
While the government spends America’s money on war, my generation and the generation that follows me seems to spend more of our money on material items. Now, there is nothing wrong with spending money on material items. Those of you who know me know that I have a love for shoes, bags, and accessories. I like nice ish too. But sometimes we can get a little excessive don’t you think? Like how Obama was “out of order” in using his resources to strike Libya, we are often times “out of order” in using our personal resources to strike... Well, I’m not sure what we strike. But it is rarely the poverty, homelessness, and a lack of health insurance - what I would consider domestic problems plaguing minority communities, ultimately affecting the majority communities in some way.
The Daily Dose of Realness: Nicki Minaj has paid her dues by working hard for the wealth she has received. I give her that. Many of you reading this post have sacrificed to gain the status and success you currently have. But what is she/we doing with her/our resources to give back? Assuming she/we is leveraging her/our resources to end the wars in her/our community, is it important that she/we advertise(s) the organizations/people to which she/we donate(s)? We acquire money and we spend it. Are we spending it on things that will help each other socially? As you go about your day, first thank God for His faithfulness in allowing you to live comfortably. But don’t forget about the least of these. Each one, reach one. Lend a helping hand. Money makes the world go round. It always has and it will continue as such. However, we see that our government leaders are “out of order” spending our money on the wrong things. Let’s challenge ourselves to do the opposite with our personal wealth. God bless.
Turns out the US has unleashed the dungeon dragons! While eating lunch yesterday in my favorite Mexican restaurant, I got word that Obama gave the greenlight on a US-led military strike in Libya in order to neutralize the military forces of Moammar Gadhafi, forcing him to step-down from a four-decade reign. As CNN’s Wolf Blitzer quantified the strike, all I could say was "O-M-G. We are in a world war!" French and British soldiers alike followed suit to Marine special forces pilots to take out one of Gadhafi's primary compound estates. The anchor reporting from Tripoli could only confirm that the assault fire had ceased indicating that perhaps the first phase of Target Libya was accomplished.
Is their any justification for this strike? Every customer sitting at the counter with me enjoying their lunch had their eyes glued to the television. I took a subtle glance around the place to see responses to the news. There were looks of confusion, but mostly faces of indifference. Once again, the US is "all up all up all up in the bank with the funny face" writing checks for a war our asses can’t cash!! I’m not sure I support President Obama’s decision to wage war in Libya. He ensures a swift entry and end. But just think about if it goes down differently? What if Gaghafi puts up a fight, and decides he’s gonna go out like Tony Montana. Then what? We will be stuck with the bill for rebuilding Libya. That’s what. Iraq is already trying to get a gargantuan size amount of money to rebuild. Plus, Obama promised he’d focus on the economy and bring troops home. What if this thing gets ugly? Troops won’t be going nowhere fast. PLUS how do we know that the Libyan rebels we are supporting are pro-America or pro-democracy. They could very well be part of Al-Qaeda. This could be bad for business.
The Daily Dose of Realness: Do you realize that we are in THREE battles right now? THREE!! TRES!! TROIS! TRI! Dr. King identified three evils that we as a global community will have no choice but to address in order to have a justified existence. The "triple evils" - as he called them - are racism and poverty, war and militarism, and excessive materialism. Perhaps as a society we've made racial progress albeit the college to prison ratio for minorities insists there's still much work to be done. Poverty and militarism, however, are at an all-time high. Why are we always the one to come in and help another country fight their battles, meanwhile the economic war raging on domestic shores gets exponentially worse? Put yo’ own oxygen on first, THEN help someone else!! Frustrated.
"Cash Rules Everything Around Me (C.R.E.A.M.). Get the money! Dolla-dolla bill y’all."
Thanks be to Method Man and the 9-member Wu-Tang Clan for this hook. The name of the song is called "C.R.E.A.M.", it came out in 1993, and it inked the song as a hip-hop classic on an album that sold several million copies around the world. It also described a worldview of not only my generation, but also the capitalistic tone of the society in which all of us live. So this week, in the name of TRUTH, we set the tone by exploring in a very provocative way the ironies and double standards of making money, using money, giving money away, and leveraging the mighty dollar for personal strategic purposes. For example, did anyone watch Christiane Amanpour yesterday morning, and her coverage of Libya in an interview with Saif Gadhafi (son of Moammar Gadhafi)? The point was raised that America just might be supplying Libyan rebels with arms to continue waging the war against Gadhafi. That one day we, the US, will wake up and realize we’ve made a big mistake similar to the WMD issue in Iraq. I was totally thrown by this statement. Could it be that the US, like Nicki says above, is "all up all up all up in the bank with the funny face" providing resources for a war that might not be as people-centered as the media would like for us to think? I sure hope Obama is not launching strikes for strategic US interests.
What about the strikes we launch in our personal lives? The choices we make in order to gain and leverage resources for our personal interests? From this perspective, the Daily Dose of Realness series for this week will take a look at the global, as well as the local, role of excessive materialism. If we explore the levels of commentary from the verse above, Nicki - who is notoriously popular for her funny faces, pink tutu’s, and Barbie-ish image - is clearly challenging anyone questioning how she has chosen to make her money.
The Daily Dose of Realness: Brace yourself. If you enjoyed the provocative and personal posts from last week, this week will challenge you to think even more about CREAM and how it literally rules everything around us. The challenge we face is how to "keep it real at the intersection" where our personal values that raised us are in direct confrontation with the worldly capitalistic values that surround us. How does Cash Rule Everything Around YOU??!
Wow what a week! I had no idea of the level of feedback we would get this week. Like for instance my two girlfriends that I mentioned on Tuesday are listening. They aren't talking yet, but they read my commentary and are listening now. In my book that's a good thing. And it means that the "30 Days of... Daily Dose of Realness" is working, encouraging, and inspiring.
The Daily Dose of Realness: To bitch or not to bitch. That is the question. Relationships - good relationships - come around every blue moon. Treasure those that matter. Get rid of those that don't. The personal ones and professional ones. Have a good weekend. See you Monday.
Yesterday I arrived in Cincinnati, Ohio. I'm here for the annual meeting of the National Council for Black Studies (NCBS). NCBS is one of the flagship organizations dealing with the research and scholarship of all things African-American. I'm here to speak about the use of my Hip-Pop Leadership Pedagogy. There are other scholars here engaging in dialogue about the Black family: the sociology of it and the implications of these current dynamics. Another conversation going on here is the conversation of the Black woman, thereby raising questions such as those we've addressed thus far this week. Yes, African American-related think tanks are concerned about personal and professional tensions between Black men and Black women. From their perspective, the bitch/ho language that's all in Nicki's music is problematic. Just as important, the lack of commitment we have to one another to "Die Hard like Bruce Willis" threatens the development of Black families. I like the fact that Nicki Minaj sings about love and being in love and the struggles of staying in love. I’ve been there. I understand that shit happens. But sometimes we have to just let things go to make relationships work. We can’t hold on to every little thing just to be right and make the other person wrong. Every battle can’t be a war zone. And sometimes to protect our dignity, we have to just say, “OK you win” and just walk away. Whatever walking away means...
The Daily Dose of Realness: How do we have more balance, harmony, and reciprocity in our personal relationships so that rappers are rapping more about their wives instead of their "wifey's"; so that “wifey’s” stop acting like having a “fiance” is sufficient enough; and so that the rate of baby-mommas and baby-daddys decreases as the rate of wives and husbands increases? My grandmother and mother always told me to never give up the milk without requiring the cow. I know now more than ever that means. We - women and men - MUST raise our standards and expectations of one another. Otherwise, at the next NCBS conference we will STILL have these same conversations. Have a great Thursday.
Yesterday I asked if there was any justification in the disrespectful ways in which women treat one another. Today, I’m wondering about the ways in which women and men treat one another. If we use the Basketball Wives example then one could legitimately think, "Heck. No wonder there’s a thin line. Look at how we (women and men) enable all this negative behavior." For the sake of today’s entry, we aren’t gonna use the tragedies of this reality show as an exemplar. Let’s bring it down to us "normal" folk, and explore the dynamics of male-female relationships in a more generic way. Joan Morgan, a friend and colleague of mine, wrote a book titled When Chickenheads Come Home to Roost. Amongst several topics, she explores the lack of order in male/female relationships, indicating it is this imbalance in loyalties that give way to wholesome, solid, and love-centered interactions between Black men and Black women. She writes, "Yeah, sistas are hurt when we hear brothers calling us bitches and hos. But the real crime isn’t the name-calling, it’s their failure to love us - to be our brothers in the way that we commit ourselves to being their sistas." She goes on to say, "Any man who doesn’t truly love himself is incapable of loving us in the healthy way we need to be loved." In other words, Black men - unlike Black women - aren’t willing to "Die Hard like Bruce Willis" for our love is he doesn’t love himself first. Ok. I get it. That logic makes perfect sense. But I wouldn’t draw such a broad stroke. Actually there are some good men out there who want to reciprocate the love. They may not be ballers and shotcallers, but good men - like good women - still exist. The overarching question is are Black women willing to receive it, or are we just as jaded as our male counterparts? Are we capable of going the distance even when we love ourselves, are capable of giving love, and capable of receiving love.
I’ll speak for myself here. Those of you who know me personally know that I was recently engaged to a man that I planned to spend the rest of my life with...so I thought. Things got difficult for me. I lost patience with some key issues, began to detach, and eventually dipped. Am I at peace with my decision to leave? Yes I am. Did I do the best I could given the circumstances? I believe I did. Could I have done some things differently? Sometimes I think I could have; other times I don’t. He is a good dude. Just wasn’t the dude for me in my current space and time. I’m a good chick. Just not the chick for him in his current space and time. Like Nicki Minaj sings, we started seeing "right thru" one another. But when the difficulties came we couldn’t stick it out anymore.
The Daily Dose of Realness: My question is how are we - my generation that is - supposed to have long and productive relationships like our mothers, fathers, grandmothers, and grandfathers if we are so quick to leave and play the blame game? Surely they had the same and similar problems that we face: infidelities, lack of communication, financial problems, family dramas. They’ve made it though: 20, 30, 40, and 50 years of marriage. And through it all they "RE-JOYCE", right? So how did we go from "dieing hard like Bruce Willis" to "bouncing like Bankhead" when difficulties and challenges surfaced? What happened to our collective loyalties to one another?
Is there any justification in women disrespecting one another? Sure, there are times when we - women, men, people - have to protect their dignity. But I don't believe there is ANY reason for women in particular to DISRESPECT one another. Why? Well, first of all we live in a society that is set up to pit women against one another. We live in an undemocratic world where women are STILL fighting for their equal rights in the workplace and in their respect societies. To buy into the wars that insist there isn't enough men, money, and shoes in the world to go 'round is false and ridiculous. So I think women have to work extra hard to protect their relationships with one another because ya girls are most of the time all we have. Many things we go through are understood only by other women.
I have two girlfriends who are beefing right now. They've known eachother since highschool. They moved to the same city together. They've seen one another at their very best and at their very worst. And at this very moment, they aren't speaking.
The Daily Dose of Realness: There is nothing more important than girlfriends and productive relationships with women. If you are beefing with a girlfriend, pick up the phone and tell her nothing is worth the sacrifice of a friendship. If you are beefing with a woman on the job, play the bigger lady. Instead of stabbing one another in the back, look out for one another. There's no justified value in undignified tension between us chicks. Enjoy your day!
Happy Monday.
Last Friday I said that I would start this week's Daily Dose of Realness by marching boldly into the territory of relationship/misogyny conversations. And after watching VH-1s Basketball Wive's reunion show lastnight - witnessing five miserable women go back and forth cussing out one another and screaming "bitch this and bitch that" - I feel even more committed to this theme. Not only do I want us to consider the TRUTH behind female-female relationships, but also male-female relationships, and whether or not they skirt the line of misogyny when words like "bitch" and "ho" get tossed around as often as "hello" and "goodbye"...BY WOMEN. This type of language offers insight to these ongoing dilemmas.
Like the ladies of Basketball Wives (especially Evelyn), Nicki Minaj uses "bitch" a lot. A whole lot. And while listening to her songs - specifically "Romans Revenge" and "Did It On Em" - I got to thinking about how the three verses above provide access to conversations about the use of this perjorative. More importantly, I wondered how this type of storytelling further acknowledges the issues women have with one another. It makes me take into consideration a comment made to me by one of my female students. She believes that Nicki Minaj is misogynist. That she hates women. That perhaps her raps about bitches being her sons and whipping out her male tool (if she had one) to "piss" on these bitches indicates that she can't stand women. Yeah, maybe Nicki is calling men bitches (because male bitches exist too). But I don't think so. I think her primary victim is Lil Kim. So after listening more closely, I got to thinking to myself "Can women be misogynist? Do we enable the sexism and misogyny that we tend to blame men for?" The women on Basketball Wives and all these other reality shows seem to make me think women can exhibit a hatred towards one another like its going out of style. Another level of commentary might suggest Minaj is addressing the rap industry or anything or anyone be they male or female - who decides to try and hold her back. Those are bitches to her, right? Perhaps. Don't get me wrong. I know that context is key here. I also know that the word is used positively to imply a female bossiness for making things happen. I don't think this is the case here.
Besides I'd like to keep my focus on the strained relationships between women that play themselves out in music lyrics, television, and in our day-to-day lives. I'd like to keep my commentary on the fact that Nicki Minaj is addressing Lil Kim in many of these verses rather than embracing her. I'd like to know why these two women - both of which are the minority in a male-dominated industry - are not working together. There's room for both of them. I'd like to know if its possible for women to be misogynist towards one another, and if so WHY? Its the 21st century and bitches - oops I mean women - still cant really get along. This makes me sad.
The Daily Dose of Realness: Im speaking primarily to my female readers. Why is it that we are our own worst enemy? Why do we get on TV and clown ourselves by clowning one another? Why is it that we fight over silly things like men, money, and material BS? How can we get pass the cattiness that gets us nowhere fast? In other words, WHO YOU CALLIN' A BITCH, and WHY? Let us know.
Happy Friday friends and family. I'm not gonna keep you too long this morning.
You know the Nicki verse thats above is the clean version. She really says "Sh***ed on em." This is probably my new favorite Nicki Minaj song. Out of respect for those of you with sensitive eyes and ears, I'ma keep it Pine-Sol clean. Even though at the beginning of the week I DID say that I was in the mood for running my mouth a lil bit. :-)
Anyway, I got crazy feedback about my smack-talking. Good feedback, that is. Apparently I'm not the only one unleashing the dungeon dragons, slashing, and burning these artificial boundaries and limitations we tend to find ourselves facing. Shout out to those of you who found inspiration in this week's posts. An even bigger shout out to you all who got bold, beautiful, and decided to put on your supershero/hero capes.
Question. Did anyone actually go into the phone booth? Did anybody "do it on" them? Did anyone throw up the deuces on any unhealthy forces in your life?
The Daily Dose: It's Friday damnit!! We made it through another week blessed and unscathed by the BS. Have a superfly, superfun weekend. The sun will be shining in the ATL. Talk to you next week when we start using Nicki Minaj to converse about relationships and misogynist storytelling. (Woooo I can almost hear you saying "I can't wait to get my Daily Dose of Realness next week.") We work hard to make this worth your time. So stay tuned. Be blessed.
All my life I have had to put on a cape. Not in every instance or situation, but some circumstances have called for me to become my own supershero. The last time I had to put on my cape was to get out of a personal relationship that meant so much to me. While that was one of the hardest things I've had to do, what made it harder was that life went on. I did not necessarily have time to mourn or grieve because I had projects with deadlines that called for my undivided attention. So I put on my cape, tapped into my inner dungeon dragon, blew hot fire on some situations, and became my own supershero. It has not been easy.
I super relate to this verse because Nicki admits her mistakes. I can get down with that. I don't hang around people who dont make mistakes because if you haven't made mistakes that means you haven't failed. If you haven't failed, you didn't learn. If you didn't learn, then you have no wisdom. Mistakes cause you to live a balanced and harmonious life. Back in 07 while Nicki was making mixtapes and DVDs, I was grinding at the University of Georgia to get my PhD. I put on my cape when I applied to UGA with the idea of implementing hip hop into curriculum. I tapped into my inner dungeon dragon when I had to remove a member from my dissertation committee so I could graduate. I became my own supershero when I lost my dad right before taking the exams that determined whether I received my PhD.
Pulling out our cape, tapping into our inner dungeon dragon, and becoming our own supershero (or hero) is something we do over and over. It is the balance of life; the explanation for ups and downs, trials and tribulations.
Today's Daily Dose: Think about what you were doing in 2007. What mistakes did you make? Are those mistakes informing how you are living in 2011? Are you still making the same mistakes? If you are, you need to put on your cape, tap into your inner dungeon dragon and become a supershero/hero. The time is now. The world needs you. (And don't forget to put on a nice pair of shoes to make it fun; even if they aren't Jimmy Choo's.)
In "Fly" Nicki Minaj says that she is "not a word." That she is not a line. That she is can never be defined or put in a box. She goes on to say that she represents an ENTIRE generation - a generation that is more often than not under continuous scrutiny and criticism. Now, of course there are a variety of ways to understand this verse. One level of commentary is feminist, and representative of our power as diverse and resilient creatures who, in the face of continued racism and patriarchy, are required to keep the inner dungeon dragon on ready, set, go for whenever the time calls. A case in point are the women who marched yesterday in Egypt to expose their role in
facilitating a more democratic post-Mubarak society. Women are the shit. But I digress.
An alternative level of commentary is more humanist, and representative of how music, lyrics, and culture serve as valuable resources for understanding life's natural order.
I got several calls about yesterday's post "Raah Raah Like a Dungeon Dragon." Apparently there are a lot of us dealing with situations and people that need to be eliminated. One conversation I had in particular was with my new friend and colleague Michael Mauldin. He reads The Daily Dose of Realness, and finds it quite intriguing and enlightening. But he went even deeper on me, and reminded me that in the art of war - be it personal or professional - there will always be casualties. That whenever we eliminate non-supportive situations and people, there will more than likely be innocent bystanders who fall victim to the elimination. I thought this was a wise dose of insight. As a matter of fact, it made me think about a recent personal situation that I went through that forced me to distance a young girl that I absolutely love. The situation, however, called for me to walk away completely and unfortunately that included her as well. Again, I digress. He went on to note that the goal is to keep the numbers of innocent bystanders low when justifiably "unleashing the dungeon dragon." I appreciated his wisdom. I also got to thinking about the value of music.
The Daily Dose: We are more than words, lines, and verses that rhyme (ha that rhymed). The fact that one line - "Raah raah like a dungeon dragon" - provided access to an insightful conversation further cements the moral value of hip-hop culture, social media, rap music, and their resourceful abilities to gain knowledge and understanding about lifes complexities. This is the consciousness of hip-hop. It is also the criticism. Get down with it, or get gone! Peace and blessings.
"Rah, rah. Like a dungeon dragon." Thanks be to Busta Rhymes, who created this line on the classic song "The Scenario" by A Tribe Called Quest. I'm gonna switch it up a bit and say that I'M a dungeon dragon blowing heat on the haters. You know what? Im so sick of the haters. More importantly, Im tired of us talking about haters. But they exist. Haters are like roaches. They wont go anywhere unless they are addressed and exterminated. And they always seem to come back, don't they? I guess as long as you are moving forward - like roaches - some one, some thing, or some people will be there to hate. To pester you.
It's a fact of life. Hating that is. Its an indication that we, I, am doing something right; that Im on my ish. For example, when Im working on a project that is important to me and no one is hating, I worry a little bit. It must mean I am not pushing enough buttons. And, like Hip Hop did in its heyday, I want to push buttons, ruffle feathers, blow heat...like a dungeon dragon. I guess that is what Nicki meant when she said she's Aladdin and not Jasmine. Aladdin, in the Disney movie, ruffled feathers because he had nothing to lose, took what he wanted, and lived from day to day (grant it, he was poor, but thats not the point). By the time someone caught him or tried to catch him, he was two steps ahead. That's how I like to be; two steps ahead.
When I created The HipHop2020 Curriculum Project while in graduate school, I had no idea where it was going to go. I just thought it was a cool idea. Now it is soaring and people still not fully on; not used to the idea of using popular media, more specifically, hip hop as a vessel to change the world. Its cool though. The students get it. And at the end of the day, thats the most important. I'll give the doubters about 2 years to catch up. By then, we'll be on to the next (on on to the next one).
What I look like slowing down? Back to a "has been." Not even.
The Daily Dose: In the name of justice, life sometimes requires us to be a dungeon dragon. To blow hot fire on people and the limitations of life. What is the consequence of fire? Elimination. Dont be a hater and dont accept hate from others. Show love - even when you dont want to. Peace and blessings.
Merry Monday. Indeed it is a beautiful start to what I know will be a spirit-filled week. It's Spring Break (before Spring) in my neck of the woods, and I woke up this morning feeling like doin' a little smack-talking this week. Ya know? Running my mouth. Stuntin a lil bit. In honor of Women's History Month and the fact that the HipHop2020 family is in history-making mode, we decided to bring the world into our social media classroom once again to witness
"The MC in Y-O-U". Click here to watch
What is that?
Well, we believe there lives an "MC" in each one of us. That there is this person, this mistress or master of ceremony, that orchestrates their own truth and destiny, and then is required to constructively tell the rest of the world about it in the most confident and braggadocious way. The truth of the matter is that Im on some next level "ish", and Im teaching my students to be the same way.
"I think Im Stella Winfrey. Michelle Giuseppe..."(ha ha ha, in my Nicki Minaj voice.) Thats the MC in me.
The Daily Dose: The truth is that its alright to stunt a lil bit when its kept in the proper context. So, pat yourself on the back this morning. Give yourself a hug. Look in the mirror, and tell yourself "Damn I look good today", then step into the office wearing a confident glow that no one can dim. Peace and love from the D-O-C. :-)
Yesterday's class was full of teachable moments. One in particular came from a student who opened himself up in a major way. The irony of making his feelings vulnerable to the rest of the class rested on a comment he made about making mistakes, and his fear of failing. The conversation went something like this. "Dr. Wilson," he said after raising his hand, "I grew up in a Christian school where they say You have to live this way. 'You have to live that way. You have to
live this way. You have to live that way. You have to do everything right (emphasis from him)'". He kept going. "But now [that Im in college] Im at a point where I feel like I cant do everything the right way. I feel like sometimes you have to do something the wrong way to learn what the right way is. So Im having a major conflict within myself. Im almost scared to make mistakes because Im afraid to fall."
You're probably wondering about my response to him. Like any good teacher would do, I got personal. And I shared with him (and the rest of the class) a time recently when I put myself out there, applied for a fellowship, and got turned down. I was so upset because I poured every piece of energy and passion into my application. I looked at it over and over to ensure it was solid. In the end, I was chosen as an alternate and was later told that I would not be granted the award because all of the finalists accepted. No this wasnt necessarily a mistake I made. But the feeling of rejection can be a heavy burden - especially when the outcome is the complete opposite of the expectation. For a moment, only a small moment, I wanted to give up. Then I snapped out of my self-imposed misery. What was the alternative? To not try? To stop pursuing what I know is a calling? To stop making myself vulnerable to the Universe? He understood my point, and appreciated the candid testimony.
One of my new favorite songs is Nicki Minaj's "Fly". She says that she came to win. She came to reach her destiny, and achieve her calling against the odds of life and the surety of possible failure. It reminds me of another favorite quote from Benjamin E. Mays. It goes, "It isn't a disgrace not to reach the stars, but it is a disgrace to have no stars to reach for." Another one is "Not failure, but low aim is sin." FLYING FAILURES dont stick around. They eventually go away.
The Daily Dose: Is there a dream you gave up on just because you didn't get it right the first, second, or third time? The only way to win is to not be afraid to lose. All great winners - whether female or male - experience loss before gain. The only way to fly is to not be afraid of the possibilities of a crash landing. Our only option is to brush off our shoulders, press reset, and go at it again a different way. Have a safe, wonderful, and spirit-filled weekend. Talk to you Monday morning.
Self-made. What does that mean? When someone claims to be a "self-made millionaire" or "self-made artist", what are they really trying to get at? You know when a man or a woman claims to be some one who single-handedly pulled themselves up by their own bootstraps to find success without the help of a hardworking parent, trust fund, angel investor, cake daddy, cougar mommy, prayers from grandma and grandpa. You know where I'm going with this right? Sure ya do. I bet my left pinky you know of some individuals who really think they
stand on the shoulders of no one. That type of attitude has ALWAYS confused me because if there's one thing that I can't stand is when someone drinks their own kool-aid. I hear it in rap songs. Ive even come across students who really think they made it to college on their own without the assistance of no one but themselves.
So this morning I'm feeling a little personal. After I read the lyrics for today (provided to me by my mind squad. I love them), I got to thinking about how nothing we do in life is in isolation. Nothing we accomplish in life is a solo act. There is always a background singer (I say that metaphorically). Unfortunately for my generation and the emerging generation we suffer from this sort of narcissistic individualism in a major way. Maybe it was passed down. Maybe it comes out of some kind of struggle. But for some God-awful reason there are STILL several "hip hop aficionados" (especially some of our most celebrated rappers) acting like they made it on their own. (sigh)
Thankfully, Nicki Minaj takes an opposite approach. She highlights a theme of UNITY that is inherent throughout Pink Friday, offering insight to the balanced reciprocity of her life while also indirectly inspiring YOU to think about the shoulders upon which you stand. Who is your family? And how do they balance out the blessings youve been able to acquire? In "Moment For Life" Nicki raps about being blessed rather than lucky. She shouts out her haters, calls herself the champion, and then recognizes the supportive force that pushes her towards her destiny: her ethnic family, her community family, and her Young Money family, all of which create a triangulation of influences that contribute to the amount of success shes been able to acquire over the last year.
The Daily Dose: Does anyone really make history, gain wealth, or create success on the solo? We all stand on the shoulders of teams, families, sisterhoods, brotherhoods, mentors, and the kindred spirits of those who've come before us, those who are with us now, and those who have yet to reveal themselves. We are all intricately networked and linked to one another. Bound together to achieve common goals. A hater is someone who refuses to recognize this fact of life. So NEVER. DRINK. YOUR. OWN. KOOL-AID!
Enjoy your day
Hey Barbs and Ken Barbs! (...in my Nicki Minaj voice). Some of the most dynamic and successful women are those who exemplify a beautiful courage on the inside and out. When I think about mighty females who have changed the course of history, I can't help but think of Michelle Obama, Queen Latifah, Princess Diana, Diane Sawyer, Oprah Winfrey, my mother, my sister, Halle Berry, and my two new friends Salli Richardson-Whitfield and Ava DuVernay, the director of I Will Follow (in theaters March 11.) These women have three things in
common. They understand order, have learned how to practice it, and apply it to their lives. In Monster Nicki Minaj raps, I think big, get cash, make em blink fast." One might infer she's talking about men because she raps about a menage a trois before rapping the "pink wig, thick ass, give em whip lash" line. I don't think the opposite sex is her only reference. Another layer of commentary could mean that she, like many female powerhouses, recognizes her physical beauty and how to constructively leverage it to get what she desires, whether that be from men in a romantic relationship or from men in the workplace. All of these women have style, substance, and against the odds and pressures find a way to remain secure in their own skin. They also stay true and orderly to their callings. I RESPECT that.
I wanted to not like Nicki Minaj at first. I thought she was just another template of the stereotypical female rapper who got her stamp from men. I said this in BETs My Mic Sounds Nice: A Truth About Women in Hip-Hop. Now I respect her as an MC first, and then a female MC.
The order of the universe has made it so that Nicki is the most popular rapstress of the day. While some people sit and plan disorder in their lives, Nicki Minaj tells XXL, in the May 2010 issue, that she just did what she felt. She followed the order of her calling. Once she realized the sky was the limit, she reached for the stars. We can learn something from that. While the Mayan calendar is running out and many people feel as if the world will end by 2012, others feel like 2012 will be the beginning of the end. I really dont know what will happen but lets assume that 2012 is the beginning of the end. How will you order your life? What will be the most important thing you have to do? What job will you strive for? Who will you love? How hard will you love? Will you plan or will you just do what you feel?
