Chris Brown's MJ Tribute

Last night at the 2010 BET Awards Chris Brown put on a show. He gave us the MJ tribute we've all been waiting for. He definitely did his thing. I've been anticipating this moment since I found out Michael Jackson passed away. I knew there would be some sort of dedication show/concert featuring some of today's hottest artists and the biggest MJ admirers, which no doubt included Chris Brown and Usher. Usher put it down at the nationally televised memorial service held shortly after Michael's death. He didn't get to dance that day, but whenever Ursh dances we get a little Michael, not to mention he performed in front of Michael for his 30th anniversary special. Anyways, Chris went in at the BET Awards. He even broke down while he was supposed to be singing Man in the Mirror, which I'm sure had alternative meanings for him, and the audience had to join in and sing the lyrics with him. Either way I was touched and Chris definitely delivered. In the words of Trey Songz, "Chris killed that."

Just Throw It in the Bag!!!

And the Los Angeles Lakers are 16x NBA Champions. That is one championship away from tying Boston for the record. Derek Fisher and Kobe Bryant collected their fifth championship rings, while Ron Artest picked up his first. And it was well deserved because he did the damn thing last night. The rest of the Lakers appeared to be struggling out on the court during the first half and it was nothing like the Lake show they put on during game 6 (maintaining a 20-point lead most of the game which ended 67-89) they were finally able to pull it together though in the last 12 minutes of the game and maintain their edge. This game 7 was crazy, but all the angst and anxiety was well worth the finish. While I think Rondo has incredible talent (the kid never gives up!) and Boston is obviously a veteran team, it just wasn't their time to shine last night. I never for one second this whole playoff season doubted that the Lakers would win the title. Its like gatorade "is it in you?" The Lakers have got it and no one can contest that right now, not the Celtics and not even LeBron.

The final score of game 7 was 79-83. Kobe took home the MVP trophy as expected. This is Phil Jackson's 11th championship as a coach and as noted after the game he usually wins championships in a series of three. So, will Phil be back next year to coach the Lakers, let's hope so we can do it all again next year!


Want more, check out this article and analysis over at Dime mag:
http://dimemag.com/2010/06/purple-reign-2-lakers-repeat-as-nba-champions-kobe-as-finals-mvp/#more-46839

Rev Run's Words of Wisdom

"When you take things for granted, the things you are granted get taken."

Check out the Rev's twitter page for more words of wisdom → http://twitter.com/RevRunWisdom

Daily Fortune

So, I opened my fortune cookie today and it read: "Be mischievous and you will not be lonesome." (Uh huhhh)





Here's what my daily horoscope read:
"Some news, or possibly a connection with someone regarding your career will go rather well today, Gemini. It's possible that you are planning on negotiating an improvement in your income, or, at least working on your image by window-shopping for upgraded styles or skills. You may have the chance to create new opportunities for yourself as well as improving your current situation. Do not let yourself get into trying to be more like others on a superficial level; your goal today is to emphasize who you are and what you do best."

Quite inspiring.

Artist Spotlight

Nipsey Hussle came to UCLA a little over a week ago to participate in an intellectually stimulating panel discussion that explored the materialistic, misogynistic, and violent images portrayed in hip hop music videos. As a description of the event stated, "Many are aware of the stereotypes that are perpetuated in these videos but few are actually willing to deliberate and converse about them. Striving to promote edutainment (education + entertainment), the discussion will be formatted to watch different clips and compilation-footage of hip hop music videos throughout history and then spark a discourse about the social, cultural, and political undertones embedded within the videos. The goal by the end of this powerful discourse is to grant all participants and audience members the opportunity to reach a higher truth and understanding in regard to the portrayal of women, African Americans, and the greater hip hop culture through the visuals that hip hop music videos lend us."
And might I add that I was quite impressed with Nipsey's input. He was well-composed and articulated his views/thoughts in the most candid and alluring manner. He definitely secured some new fans that night and made an admirer out of me.

Black History Month Spotlight

So, for my final Black History Month post I decided to do something different. I decided to share something I wrote myself. I started working on this poem a couple of weeks ago and maybe I was unconsciously inspired by Black History Month. I didn't have a title for it but after reading the Autobiography of Malcolm X, I came up with:

The Creation of A Nation

It is not just our hands ...
It is our feet
It is our depth
It is our tongue
It is our breath
It is our chest
It is our heart
It is our strive
It is our strength
It is our vision
It is our goal
It is our thought
It is our soul
It is our laugh
It is our gums
It is our life
It is our love

Black History Month Spotlight

Josephine Baker (June 3, 1906 – April 12, 1975) was an American expatriate entertainer. She is most recognized as a singer and dancer (or as I would say a showgirl). She became a French citizen in 1937. She was also the first American-born woman to receive the French military honor, the Croix de Guerre. Although based in France, Baker supported the American Civil Rights Movement during the 1950s. She refused to perform for segregated audiences in the United States. She protested in her own way against racism, adopting 12 multi-ethnic orphans, whom she called the "Rainbow Tribe."

Black History Month Spotlight

The Color Purple (1982) is a Pulitzer Prize-winning novel by acclaimed author Alice Walker.
Taking place mostly in rural Georgia, the story focuses on female black life during the 1930s in the Southern United States, addressing numerous issues including poverty, racism, sexism, and the early African American woman's exceedingly low position in American social culture. The novel tells the story of a young African American girl named Celie, who is transformed as she finds her self-worth through the help of two strong female companions while coming of age in the rural South. Walker emphasizes throughout the novel that the ability to express one’s thoughts and feelings is crucial to developing a sense of self. (This is also an acute and imperative theme in Maya Angelou's I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings.)
The novel was adapted into a film in 1985 starring Whoopi Goldberg, Danny Glover, Oprah Winfrey, and Margaret Avery.

Black History Month Spotlight

The fearless and free-spirited Malcolm X was a minister, public speaker, and human rights activist. Born and raised in Lansing, Michigan in 1925, Malcolm witnessed first-hand the harsh and cruel realities that black Americans faced as the son of a Baptist preacher heavily involved in the movement and teachings of Marcus Garvey. Malcolm has always proven to be independent and a leader among his peers. He was only educated up to the fourth grade where he was President of his class, in which he was one of only a few black students. But after living a tough life in the streets of Boston and New York, Malcolm was sent to prison where he made the decision to educate himself by taking advantage of the prison library and immersing himself in literature and the rich history of past civilizations. While in prison Malcolm became familiar with the Nation of Islam and the honorable Elijah Muhammad. From that point on Malcolm devoted his life to Allah, spreading the truth of this nation, and enlightening the millions of black Americans to exercise pride in their race and self-reliance and that one day the truth shall set us free.

There is something about courage, confidence, and charisma that is so charming and commandeering.

One of my fave quotes was when an interviewer asked Malcolm X if he considered himself militant and Malcolm laughed and answered, "I consider myself Malcolm."

Black History Month Spotlight

Beloved (1987) is a Pulitzer Prize-winning novel by Nobel laureate Toni Morrison. In the novel, Morrison portrays the horrors and lasting torment of slavery centered on escaped slave, Sethe. Fiercely determined to move beyond her brutal past, Sethe vows to give her children freedom from a life of servitude — at any cost. She kills her 2-year-old daughter to keep her out of the grasp of slave catchers, only to be revisited by the restless spirit of the beloved child — first as a ghost, then in the flesh. The book's epigraph reads: "Sixty Million and more," by which Morrison refers to the estimated number of slaves who died in the slave trade. In this novel, Morrison paints a somber picture of the brutal effects of slavery. The 'Sixty million and more' is dedicated to all those affected by slavery, reinforcing the major theme of slavery's generational repercussions. The effects of slavery on the self are inherited as a kind of intrinsic torment. The novel examines both the mental and physical trauma caused by slavery.