Skillz is For Real

The latest single and video from Richmond, Va.'s Skillz. Don't leave your girl around him.

Bush Frees John Forté

President George Bush has given progressives and his critics a lot to complain about the final days of his presidency. While his last minute laws regarding abortion, drilling in national parks and "clean air," aren't unexpected considering his policial leandings, the president made a move today that few could have anticipated, he commuted the sentence of Fugees affiliate John Forté.

Forté was nabbed at in a Newark airport in 2000, when two women, caught with liquid cocaine, named him as their contact. The producer and rapper has always maintained his innocence and refused to accept a plea deal. Despite help from friends in high places like Carly Simon, he was sentenced under mandatory minimum drug sentence laws to 14 years in federal prison in 2001.

The rapper concedes he made a mistake that day, but he and his legal team argue that his sentence was unjust. George W. Bush appears to have agreed with them. Forté was among 16 people who were pardoned or had their prison sentence commuted. Besides being convicted the Bush's home state of Texas, its unclear why this case caught W's attention. Perhaps he's caught the holiday spirit and this is just the beginning. Remy Ma home for Christmas? We'll have to wait and see.

MC Breed, dead at 36

Midwest rapper MC Breed died yesterday. He was admitted to the hospital in September for kidney failure after he collapsed during a pick-up basketball game. He released more than 10 albums was known for his songs "Ain’t No Future in Yo’ Frontin’” and ”I Gotta Get Mine." The latter song featured Tupac and follows below.

More ..."Ain't No Future ..."

The Subject was Dwele

As rap music became boring and homogenized, Wavelength, the failed hip-hop video show that inspires this blog, began to incorporate R&B music into the playlist. Not just any urban music, however. Most of the singers that made it onto our show (AmelLarrieux , Anthony Hamilton, D'Angelo) would've been categorized as "neo-soul" back then.

Dwele gave us a few minutes after his soundcheck at the now defunct nightclub Bojangles in Richmond, Va., back in 2003. The Detroit native, now on his third album, talks about his music, his new video and reveals that was once ... a rapper.

BTW, I'm coming up on my 100th post and I've got something special planned. Stay tuned.

It's a New One

Will.I.Am might be in line for a cabinet post considering all the work he's done for the Obama campaign. Though this doesn't come close to his first effort, its much better than his sappy second video and a fitting end to the trilogy of propaganda films. Listening to this make me wonder what happened to Cody ChesnuTT?

Yes, we did.

You can get with this.

Dres revisits "The Choice is Yours," for the election season.

MTV remembers what the "M" was for

The Pharcyde |MTV Music

MTV recently soft launched MTVMusic.com, which gives users access to a sizable portion of the network's video vault. This isn't as revolutionary as it would've been before sites like youtube took hold, but with copyright holders becoming more vigilant, this may become the only place you can search for a Prince's "America" video and actually find it. And be reasonably certain that it will still be there a week from now.

The site is easy to navigate and has over 20,000 videos. Most of the big names are there, which have become hard to find on video-sharing sites, regularly perused by the copyright police. I haven't had the time to thoroughly search for rarer rap clips, but I'm sure the archive will be expanding soon. So until I can see some Yomo & Maulkie or Yaggfu Front clips, I'll reminisce with videos like this from The Pharcyde.

Marketing rep beats street rap

Is this what would happen if Soulja Boy battled Asher Roth? 

Nailin' Palin

Terry Tate offers Alaska's governor a strong rebuttal.

Rudy Ray Moore, dead at 81

I've never sat through one of Rudy Ray Moore's films, heard any of his comedy albums or his attempts at making R&B music, but I know his work. The comedian's voice was sampled on countless hip hop records and his persona as an articulate, larger-than-life pimp was a role model for men who came of age in the 1970s. Whether that was a good thing or not is up for debate.

Moore, also known by the name of the character he often portrayed, "Dolemite" died on Sunday died in Akron, Ohio after a long illness.

Here's some of Moore's work (The ass kickin' starts at 2:15):


Moore also played the character of Petey Wheatstraw:


Here's Dolemite talking out his life and his mother, who is 98 years old. An appearance on the Arsenio Hall show follows.


A clip of Dolemite's "son" on SNL

Man's Best Friend

Beside every great rapper is his friend from the 'hood whose music career will be forced on the public. Known on the internets as "weed carriers," referring to their obligation to assume responsibility for their monied friend's bad behavior and habit, their job is can be risky, but it has its perks.

Through his close connection with DMX, who doesn't have a problem with getting arrested, Ruff Ryders member Drag-On appeared in three films and released two albums. Most people couldn't tell you one of his songs if you waterboarded them. A report suggests the rapper is now an employee of a Yonkers dry cleaners, as DMX continues his tour of courthouses.

Ray, a guy who grew up watching the failed video show that inspires this blog, Wavelength, handles this interview and talks to Drag about the delay between his releases, the content of his new album and reveals a past affiliation with another rap crew before his days as a Ryder.

Big Nat Gets Up Like a Fart Machine

Big Nat is a DJ and blogger here in Richmond, Va. His latest post is way funnier than it should be.

Welcome Back Real Talk

Peter Rosenberg and Cipha Sounds decided to keep their "Juan Epstein" podcast going a few weeks ago and last week's edition might be their best ever. The duo sit down with The Large Professor and discuss his career in detail. There's a lot of new information, even for serious students of the professor's work.

"Juan Epstein" always reminds me of discussions the Wavelength staff would have after the cameras were off. Maybe we should've filmed that ...

A Woman's Worth

The addition of Yasmine as host was a game-changer for Wavelength, the failed video show that inspires this blog. Once I relinquished hosting duties to the stunning Hampton, Va. native, her personality and energy became the nucleus of the program's final years. 

I met her while shooting a video for a rap group she sang hooks for back in 2001. She impressed me with her enthusiasm, professionalism and lack of pretension. These three qualities are usually in short supply in low budget shoots. We talked for a minute and I knew she'd be my replacement, even though she was moving to New York in a few days. 

We lost the local backdrop of the Richmond, Va., the town that had supported us for years and traded it for small studio spaces around New York City.  We also gained access to rappers and singers didn't have our RVA n on their touring schedule. Before she decided to move on, Yasmine logged hours interviews with popular artists and few movie stars. Since then, she's appeared in a movie with Goodie Mob, acted in short films and written about entertainment for Black Star News.

In this clip, with a pre-murder trial Cassidy, she provokes the rapper to break union rules and smile. 

BET's Rap City: Is it Really a Wrap?

BET recently announced that its long-running video program, "Rap City," would end next month. After almost decade on the air, the show never rose above mediocrity, although it often dipped below the mark. While the news of this mercy killing didn't warm my heart, I am concerned by what I heard from an industry insider today.

The bad news: Rap City might come back. Sources say the cancellation is a publicity stunt to generate nostalgia and interest in the program. Viewers might see a renewed version of the show back on the air in a matter of months. 

BET has attempted to reinvent itself in recent years. The cancelled "Uncut," a video show that aired uncensored videos and hired Reginald Hudlin to create some original programs for the network known for reruns and rap videos. BET might not be living up to its potential, but it's certainly not the joke it once was. Bringing back a dated and flawed franchise like Rap City would be a step backward. 

I hope it's just rumor. I hope Rap City is shut down for good and the network has moved on. Maybe, but I wouldn't BET on it.

Ready to Debut

Looks good. I wonder who's playin' Craig Mack?

Remember Summer?

Skillz "Be Alright" feat. Kornbread & Aaries from Okayplayer on Vimeo.


Skillz does. His new clip for "Be Alright," features the rapper enjoying family and friends on a warm day in Richmond, Va. As the kids are in their second week in school, it seems a little early to reminisce over the season and too late to celebrate it. But I guess Skillz thinks that'll "Be Alright" too.

Gettin' to This

It's taken me awhile to appreciate the music of Q-Tip after his "Amplified" phase and the meandering jazz/rap stuff that leaked from two unreleased albums. I even found it hard to listen to his earlier work with A Tribe Called Quest after those musical missteps. But I'm digging this. Welcome home, Q-Tip.

Wild Wild West

"Til I got flashed by the paparazzi.. Damn, these n*ggas got me, I hate these n*ggas more than the Nazis.” - Kanye West.

There's never a good time to wild out in a airport, but if you had to pick a day, Sept. 11 would probably be the worst choice you could make. Yesterday, Kanye West and his bodyguard confronted a photographer who had taken his picture at LAX. In the video above, we see the bodyguard smash a photog's camera onto the floor while Kanye (grey hoodie) makes quick work of what looks like a flash. The bodyguard then runs up on the shooter who recorded the fracas on a video camera, but isn't able to wrest it from him, according to TMZ. The web site also claims that West was arrested after he was approached the same pap who videotaped the incident while a police officer stood beside him. The rapper's bodyguard was arrested as well and both were released on $20,000 bond yesterday afternoon.