Janelle Monae- The Archandroid

Janelle Monae is Amazing. I actually have her album, "The Archandroid," on repeat at the moment. I can't help but think of Lauryn Hill as I am listening to her. Don't get me wrong though. Ms. Monae is no copycat. She has a style and rhythm all of her own, a far departure from Ms. Hills work, but there are some noticeable similarities in their voices. Here I wanted to share her new video "Cold War" which I was blown away by. Enjoy~!

Why Is Kanye West Racist?

KanYe took to UStream earlier this evening to answer questions and discuss past and present work, his inspiration for his 90 second clip for his first single "POWER" and a slew of other topics. One person asked him why he was racist. Here is what Ye had to say:

“I don’t know a rapper before me that liked white people more than me. I don’t know a rapper that wore tighter jeans. I don’t know a rapper that collaborated with more white people. I know what it is that I did that made people put it in a box like that but it never came from a place of racism. I’m not going to dial into that but I would just like to say in no way am I a racist. Sometimes it frustrates me when people call me names and try to down me like I’m not a real human being. A Lot of times when I talk extremely cocky, I’m not talking about myself, I’m talking about the work. I think people should be proud of their work or they should never put it out. All I can do is take time and be a better person….. It’s no more time to be a rude asshole, celebrity or none of that. It’s about the art. I’m not allowing my attitude to get in the way of my creation anymore. I had to change my attitude completely and now my statement is only of amazing work."

Kanye said something in this piece that truly spoke to me. "I think people should be proud of their work or they should never put it out." With all of the flack he gets about being egotistical and always bragging about his work, he is so right. So what if he brags a little more than any other artist and so what if he's not modest. The man's work is genius. This quote also inspired me to be a little more confident in my own writing. If you don't believe in yourself who will?

Check out his new new video "POWER" below:

Religion

There is neither heaven nor hell-
Well...
I believe heaven and hell
Is right here
Right on this earth
And I truly believe that I knew this
Since birth
With this waging war between good and evil
And this split
Between malevolent and benevolent people
And everything in between that's going on
We all know the difference
Between our rights and wrongs

I believe in a god.
He is in me and you
I believe he is in everything beautiful
Anything true
And absolute.
And Lucifer
I believe in him too
He breeds darkness and hatred
In empty souls
That can take it.
Bill O' Reilly he's the devil
Even though you might see him
Trying to fake it.
And that bad ass kid in the subway
Trying to kill that pigeon
Well he has the devil in him too.
And it so happens Lucifer owns
Fox 5 news

I don't know if I necessarily believe
In reincarnation.
That I once was a
Caterpillar or a butterfly
Undergoing a Transformation
Or if in my past life
I was a man
Who was married
And had a wife

And so what if the Jews lied
Of how many people who have died
Oppression is oppression
We all have seen each other cry

And I'm sorry I just can't believe
The bogus folklore of Christianity
That was a religion given to the black community
All throughout slavery
Taught to us by the "merciful" missionaries.
Which taught us to pray for our pie in the sky
While the white man reaps his heaven on earth
That the bible is a be all, say all,
Chauvinistic, homophobic,
Literary work.
Filled with fables and fairytales
That goes against what's taught in scientology
And no I'm no Tom Cruise
But the bible sure does remind me of Greek mythology.

And no I don't think that the practice of Islam is evil
At the end of the day I think religion is beautiful and pure
What fucks it up is the people.

All That We Did

I know I have a bad case of writers block
But I'm just going to vent from what lays dormant in my heart...

Our past night spent with one another
Took me by surprise
And put you in my bed
Lips interlocking and heart pounding
So hard
I could feel it in my head
Memories ran fluid through my mind streaming past as if it were yesterday
As if you and I had just met
On that hot summers day
And as our story unfolded
No one could have told me that
We wouldn't be together
At the end of that very day
So when the tables turned
And you later learned
That I was swept away
You had me thinking the whole time that everything was A-okay

But it wasn't.

Like a grape left sitting out
My situation turned sour
And the moment I turned to you
Things were different
You had the upper hand
You held the power
The claim to your heart
Proved itself to be unsuccessful
I was adamant
But you remained recalcitrant

For a while...

Broken-hearted
I took doses of you
You were my fulfillment
A temporary supplement
But I held back to prevent you from becoming my
Substitute lover
I knew if we fucked up
There would be no do overs

But when I had decided
To let go and give in
To this unresolved, unrelenting love
Your vague interpretations left me un-mended
And when I called you oblivious
I had meant it

I cannot remember how we repaired it
But here we are
Right back where we had left at
Tasting on your bottom lip
Reminiscing on
All that we did.

Ms. Tina

Tina was a bitch
I wish I knew that
She was a bitch
Before I put my lips to it
She had no heart
But so much soul
And took anybody she had any control
Over
Misconstrued
‘cause as I was used
I abused
In the end it came to who would lose

I was lost
I had thought
That I was the shit
And maybe it was her
That was the cause of it
Making me feel
On top of the world
It came to be
She was my only girl

The sad part was
That I needed her
I breathed her in
She breathed me out
She came to life
This is what we were about

We were symbiotic
But she was toxic
Slowly killing
So erotic

I remember many nights when
I watched her dancing
In the room
She consumed
I assumed
It was seduction
That left me weak
No objection
No words to speak

She changed my thinking
Altered my mind
Mass consumption
Left me blind
It was a matter of time
Before I left her
Decided it was time
To live happily ever after.

Damaged Goods- as is

Scars on the skin will heal,
But the scars left on the heart
Are marked with a reverberative pain that burns in my chest.

Damned be the one
Who broke me into
Shattered hazardous pieces.
I am a malfunctioned hot mess
Just another statistic left in the damaged goods section,
My last owner didn't take care of what was once belonging to them.
Leaving me Incomplete,
But only a few pieces missing.
You can take me as is,
And deal with the repercussions
Or Dodge this bullet
Thatll be end of discussion.

My past haunts me in my nightmares.
Subconsciously reminding me
Of what my ex did  
How do you let go if everything is a remeniscence?
How am I still feeling pain from a relationship already ended?
Walking around still
Battered and bruised
Dazed and confused
damaged and used.

Before this begins I must inform my next ex.
Let me turn my hazard lights on
Don't say I never warned you
I wear all my flaws on my forehead
Like a bottled prescription
Here is my instructions:

YOU MAY BEGIN RECEIVING SEVERE MIGRAINS DUE TO AGGRIVATION OF CONSTANT ACCUSATIONS. THIS BEING A RESULT TO A PREVIOUS HEARTBREAK AND A LOST OF TRUST. IF 3 MONTHS CONTINUES AND NO CHANGE SEND TO A DOCTOR IMMEDIATELY. PREFERRABLY A SHRINK.

And please do continue reading on to the fine print:

PRODUCT HAS BEEN REPORTED TO RAMBLE AT TIMES ABOUT A LOVER FROM THE PAST, THAT DID HIM DIRTY. IF YOU EXPERIENCE ANY SIGN OF THIS SWIPE THE PRODUCT ACROSS THE HEAD WITH A QUICK JILTED SMACK AND IT WILL COME BACK TO THE PRESENT REALITY.

Give me your patience
We can put myself back together
One piece at a time
Enlighten me with your wisdom
Teach me how to love you better
Show me a little optimism
Let me know you believe
Taking slow but steady steps,
Gradually working on making me complete.

Connotation

Pricks to the fingertips
For reaching too far
Blistering from the cold
Light me unto flames
In the wintertime
And watch me burn
As the smoke arises
From the ashes
I hope to
Bring tears of benevolent
Revelations
As you forget every word
That was mentioned
And see right through to my
Every intention