some music, to lift our spirits.

the abundance mixtape by ppp (you may know them as platinum pied pipers). 

if you're a fan of dilla, slum village, or any of the bling 47 stuff, you're undoubtedly going to love this mixtape.

enjoy!

because i'm in a pep-talky mood.

jill scott, "sweet justice"

probably my favorite jill song. good for those days when you really do need to get your ass up & out, when you really need to motivate yourself, when it seems like whatever you're doing is going to kill you instead of making you stronger, etc.





sweet justice
climb the mountain
though your hands may be weary
swim the ocean
though your legs may be tired
run the extra mile
though your stride may be worn down
fight, fight, fight, fight
never surrender

sweet justice

many sides to the same face
searching, wanting their hour
so many colors in the spectrum of life
with right lies the power
struggle, struggle, struggle, struggle
struggle only makes a man stronger
if he believes within his heart then he can find it
he will find it


sweet justice
sweet justice

freedom, the epitome of life
lay your down your burden, soldier
study, study war no more, no more
trust the soul that thrives within you
hold strong to your faith
continue, continue, continue on, on

sweet justice
sweet justice
sweet justice
sweet justice

sonic crack.

this is all nezua's fault. there. i said it. IT'S ALL YOUR FAULT, MAN! i'd shake an angry fist at you but i'm too.busy.dancing.must.stop.dancing.CANNOT.STOP.DANCING.

shit.

i can't get this song out of my head. i will be dancing to this whenever i get married to whomever is perfect enough to want to wake up to this very song at least once a week (and me, but the song is just as important) . . . holy shit.
i love it.
turn it up LOUD if you're not at work. or if you have headphones. hell, just turn it up anyway. chair dance, cubicle refugees!
prepare yourself to fall fully in love with the synth of it all.

*ahem*

the knife, "you take my breath away"



(and homegirl on the right? her makeup is killing it. don't think i won't do some shit like that. cuz i will.)

friday links:

youtube is gonna be the death of me.

feist on sesame street (feist + puppets = awesome):




stevie wonder on sesame street (even MORE awesome):

1




2


jill scott, "gimme"

the enbedding was disabled, so go here. LOVE this song.

now i'm off to prepare for a debate drinking game thought of by mos def's other other wife, lauren.

file this one under f.

for massive fail as well as fuckery deluxe.

no.

nkotb & new edition? i quit. just cuz they're from boston and maurice starr managed them, it doesn't mean this shit needed to happen. it's painful. noooooooo, lawd, WHY?

& now, for a little around-the-way shit:

new favorite:




love love love LOVE this.

& a chicago classic:



. . . i'm going to bed now. carry on, children.

another music meme

i wasn't tagged. i saw it on someone else's blog & decided to do it.

Rules:
1. Put your itunes/music player on shuffle
2. For each question, press the next button to get your answer
3. YOU MUST WRITE THAT SONG NAME DOWN NO MATTER WHAT
After you’ve answered all of the questions, tag 5 other people and then let them know they’ve been tagged to do the meme themselves!

IF SOMEONE SAYS “IS THIS OKAY” YOU SAY?
"when we were friends," cee-lo

WHAT WOULD BEST DESCRIBE YOUR PERSONALITY?
"i'm out!!!," kissey asplund

WHAT DO YOU LIKE IN A GUY/GIRL?
"driving me wild (f/ lily allen)," common

HOW DO YOU FEEL TODAY?
"summer love (f/ nicky guiland)," shuya okino

WHAT IS YOUR LIFE’S PURPOSE?
"my same," adele

WHAT IS YOUR MOTTO?
"fear not of man," mos def (it kinda is. see here.)

WHAT DO YOUR FRIENDS THINK OF YOU?
"floatin," stacy epps

WHAT DO YOU THINK OF YOUR PARENTS?
"barry bonds (f/ lil wayne)," kanye west

WHAT DO YOU THINK ABOUT VERY OFTEN?
"sesame street," goodie mob

WHAT IS 2+2?
"i (mikey) rock," the cool kids

WHAT DO YOU THINK OF YOUR BEST FRIEND?
". . . & on," erykah badu

WHAT DO YOU THINK OF THE PERSON YOU LIKE?
"doghouse," bugz in the attic

WHAT IS YOUR LIFE STORY?
"singing man," the roots

WHAT DO YOU WANT TO BE WHEN YOU GROW UP?
"o.g. bitch (speakeasy mix)," esthero

WHAT DO YOU THINK WHEN YOU SEE THE PERSON YOU LIKE?
"ebony eyes," stevie wonder

WHAT DO YOUR PARENTS THINK OF YOU?
"delirium (morgan geist tongues remix)," owusu & hannibal

WHAT WILL YOU DANCE TO AT YOUR WEDDING?
"climb (f/ vinia mojica [WHERE IS HER SOLO ALBUM ALREADY?])," mos def

WHAT WILL THEY PLAY AT YOUR FUNERAL?
"cool world," georgia ann muldrow

WHAT IS YOUR HOBBY/INTEREST?
"joy inside my tears," stevie wonder

WHAT IS YOUR BIGGEST SECRET?
"talk to me," anita baker

WHAT DO YOU THINK OF YOUR FRIENDS?
"e.t. (extraterrestrial)," outkast

WHAT SHOULD YOU POST THIS AS?
"get closer," ben westbeech

i tag teeteezie, omi, morgan, michael, courtney, and as a bonus i tag bill.
not like bill reads this blog. some friend you are.

if you didn't already know:

i'm a bit of an angela bofill fan. maybe a fanatic at some point. i've posted about her before. but peep THIS. angie & the late phyllis hyman. trust me, you'll never see anything like this from knowles & any of her contemporaries. or maybe you will. it looks like both ladies have on tina knowles specials in this video.

oooh, he can get it.

well, shit, he can.

check the rhyme: john legend, "green light (featuring andre 3000)"

a musical meme

(aj, you'd BETTER answer this shit)

IF YOUR LIFE WAS A MOVIE, WHAT WOULD THE SOUNDTRACK BE?
So, here’s how it works:
1. Open your library (iTunes, Winamp, Media Player, iPod, etc)
2. Put it on shuffle
3. Press play
4. For every question, type the song that’s playing
5. When you go to a new question, press the next button
6. Don’t lie and try to pretend you're cool…

Opening Credits:

owusu & hannibal, "upstairs downstairs"
word.

Waking Up:
mos def, "mr. nigga"
um, yeah. i guess that'll work.

First Day At School:
hope, "bring me flowers"
errrrm . . . aight.

Falling In Love:
outkast, "millenium"
me & everything around me/ is unstable like chernobyl . . . yeah.

Fight Song:
kissey asplund, "with you"
makes NO sense whatsoever.

Breaking Up:
muhsinah, "reconstruct"
YES. finally something that makes sense.

Prom:
j*davey, "valley of love"
if i graduated in 1988 and not 1998 maybe it'd fit.

Life:
cee-lo, "bass head jazz"
my life is never this chill. ever. but maybe that's what i'm headed into?

Mental Breakdown:
bilal, "slyde"
of course it'd be a bilal song. insert ignorant gossipy remark here.

Driving:
the roots, "the lesson pt. 1"
it fits. whaddaya know?

Flashback:
andre 3000, "chronomentrophobia"
the fear of clocks/ the fear of time. yeah. kinda works.

Getting Back Together:
the roots, "the next movement"
the title works. the song itself doesn't, unless i'm cutting a rug w/ said former boo to this song. and i doubt i would be.

Wedding:
muhsinah, "gogh"
the refrain says "let's go again" so maybe this works? am i even getting married?

Birth of Child:
candido, "serenade to a savage"
hey, nobody said it was the birth of MY child!

Final Battle:
esperanza spalding, "ponta de areia"
makes.zero.sense.

Death Scene:
res, "how i do"
this shit has zero rhyme or reason, but it totally fits.

Funeral Song:
dwele, "blow your mind"
well, i always did say i wanted motherfuckers to celebrate @ my "homegoing" service.

End Credits:
outkast, "so fresh, so clean"
fuck and yes.

i love this video.

devendra banhart gives me the willies, but:



the video's concept is kinda fresh.
the song doesn't suck asscakes.
and for once, it appears that mr. banhart has taken a bath. well, knock me down with a feather.

LOVE the show of kali, as well.

an oldie but goodie

erykah badu's pussy

isn't any of my business.

it's not any of yours.

it's not any of anyone's except her, the babies that have and will come out of it, her coochie doctor, and whomever she's sleeping with.

no matter if it's wilford brimley, common, all of new edition, the current president . . . IT DOESN'T MATTER.

you aren't paying any of her bills
what you eat doesn't make her shit
shut the fuck up
and quit hatin.

labelle is the shit.

evidence:



i mean, most of you who read this blog are already well aware of the levels of gangsta involved.

but in case you were clueless, i figured it important that it be made clear.

absolute teetotal truth: esthero.

here's the original blog post. she's dead on. more ppl need to read this.

why have i been lunchin so hard?

ill doctrine is great. see below:

on alicia keys & paranoia


some of mlk's other quotables


rappers + steroids = foolishness


i have such a crush on jay smooth, just on the strength. tsk, tsk.

also: go check out gordon gartrell radio, courtesy of dj brainchild and phonte from little brother.

if you don't do puppets, don't look at this video.

but if you fux with puppets, then this is for you!



don't hate on alisa peoples' fashions, either.
i wanna wear some shit like that to a dinner party. killin em.

music to wake up to:

swing - che grand

sunshine (woke me up this morning) - labelle

take it easy, my brother charles - jorge ben

congo - amel larrieux

the art of noise - cee-lo

i (mikey) rock - the cool kids

another star - stevie wonder

papillon (aka hot butterfly) - chaka khan

shorties - sa-ra

skew it on the bar-b (f/ raekwon) - outkast

michael jackson - the mitchell brothers

see-line woman - nina simone

sLAyer (feat pacific division, bleu collar, & diz gibran) - j*davey

mama (metro area birthday dub) - hugh masekela

1 2 3 4 - feist

country livin' (the world i know) - esthero

. . . i'm listening to these songs this morning cuz my black ass reaaaaaaaaaally needs the motivation.


ps --

happy birthday, atlanta. you are a dynamic, powerful, absolutely beautiful soul & i'm thankful to know you. stay open to the universe, continue to reach for everything you want, & don't ever let anyone tell you that you don't deserve every last tasty morsel that is life. may you be blessed richly today & always. beijos!

i can't stop laughing.

courtney, if you're reading: don't front. lmao!

this is why i love her:


greenbench tv on their usual foolishness:

random music-related links.

jesse boykins iii has a blog!

angela bofill is recovering bit by bit.

adele's 2nd single is "cold shoulder."

outkast + raekwon = fire. again.