Rah Rah Rah

Rah Digga was the brightest star in the Flipmode Squad, a name that Busta Rhymes gave to his friends and family who wanted to become rappers but would settle for just hanging out with him. The crew of weed carriers has dwindled down to four members, with rappers like Digga, Rampage, Papoose and Lord Have Mercy leaving the group to struggle on their own.

We met Rah at Willie's Record Store in Richmond back in 2000. Although this clip catches her on a bad hair day, in the right light, Rashia Fisher is an strikingly beautiful woman. "That's me," she said with a laugh that day as she signed pictures of herself looking slightly more fabulous. Along with revealing her fresh face, Rah shared with us her uncommon orgin, which includes private school and a stint as an egineering student.

The Willie's store is now a Radio Shack. Rah Digga is reportedly signed to "The Inc." as part of a suspergroup with Vita and Charlie Baltimore. It's hard to say which is the better look.

The McN*e*r*d Dance

Tennis shoe pimp and rock star wannabe Pharrell attempted to persuade a Paris McDonald's to open early recently by giving them a impromptu and unwanted mini-concert. I guess if Hammer could dance for popcorn chicken back in the day, this school teacher's son can humiliate himself for a couple of McNuggets. Although the money is probably long gone, at least Hammer got paid for his fast food shuffle.

Although he and his psuedo rock group, N*E*R*D, never appeared on Wavelength, the failed video show that inspired this blog, I did run  into Skateboard P a couple times while doing business. The first time I saw him he was performing onstage at Flood Zone, a defunct Richmond nightspot. He and a couple of other guys were wearing matching flowered shirts and talking over a couple beats they had produced, Noreaga's "Superthug" and MC Lyte's "I Can't Make a Mistake." The crowd was polite but unimpressed. Later that evening, I was shooting Wavelength at another club when I was tapped on the shoulder.

"What's this?" he asked.

"I'm shooting my video show," I said.

"I want to be on this."

"Alright," I said and went back to setting up my shot.

"I want to be on this," he repeated.

"Well, you can't be on it right now," I said. "I'm shooting."

I guess the "P" doesn't stand for patience. He walked away from me and went on to become a successful producer and popular recording artist. 

Wavelength Goes to the Movies

At the height of our irrelevance, Wavelength was among a handful of music shows that were invited to a series of press days for urban films in New York and California. A movie studio paid for my train ride to New York, (I never fly to New York. That's another story.), put me up in the W Hotel and gave me a per diem. All I had to do was watch a movie and chat with a few celebrities. It was the best of times.

Like much of the music that arrived in Wavelength offices during that time, I realized I wasn't the target audience for the film "Love Don't Cost A Thing." So I sat out the interviews and let Yasmine, who had moved from Richmond to New Jersey by then, to do her thing. In this clip, Yasmine talks to Nick Cannon, who after failing as a rapper, may have found his true calling as Mariah Carey's purse holder and bodyguard. 

Yasmine wants you to man up

Every now and again someone wants to know whatever happened to former Wavelength host Yasmine. I got a message from her today to check out her article in Man Up magazine. As she's dabbled as a journalist, I was expecting to read something. But this is not that kind of article. Looking good, Yasmine.

The Coup on the Boulevard

It was a rare to have a national rap act as a studio guest for Wavelength, the failed video show that inspired this blog. A convergence of events had to happen; the rapper had to be on a promo tour or in town for a concert, they had to be in Richmond on a Wednesday, they had to be available between 5:30 p.m. and 6:30 p.m., and they had to decipher my perplexing directions to the studio.

After getting stuck in an endless loop of toll booths, The Coup finally made it to the studio for a brief interview. There were supposed to perform, but we didn't have the tables at the 918 N. Boulevard studio that day. I'm sure we missed a treat if Pam is as half as good as she says she is. We came up short in other ways that day, too. We could have used another 2 to 3 feet of our painted canvas backdrop, another microphone and somebody, anybody to work the cameras. That was public access television, you go with what you got. Or don't got.

Boots Riley, the lead rapper of the The Coup, now a duo, was in Virginia last year where was charged with using profanity in public after leaving the stage of a Norfolk concert. Defunct Hampton Roads news magazine Portfolio Weekly covered the story. The charges were eventually dropped and the city council rescinded the ant-profanity ordinance after realizing it was a bunch of bullshit.

Chris Brown & Rihanna ... now what?

According to People.com, Chris Brown and Rihanna are together again and staying at one of P. Diddy's home in Miami. (I assume it's not the same one where he's twittering while in the midst of a tantric sex marathon.)  I can't think of another time where the old domestic violence scenario (guy meets girl, guy beats girl, guy loses girl, guy gets girl back) has played out on the pop culture stage. I hope this unfortunate situation inspires parents to talk with their daughters about "nice guys" who speak with their fists.  It's sad, but I think we know where their relationship will goes from here. But what about their careers?

Professionally, Chris Brown is a pariah. Wrigley spit him out as their pitchman and the milk mustache people have wiped him off their list of promoters. His next film is "Bone Deep," but you wouldn't know it, because they've erased his image from all of the promotional materials. Radio stations have banned his music and former fans have been seen grinding his CDs into the asphalt. Some celebrities spoke out in his defense, but backed off after getting a taste of the bad press that Brown is generating. (What's going on with you, Terence Howard?) Anyone who rides with Chris Brown, who was last seen on a jet ski, is putting their career in jeopardy. This includes you, Ri Ri.

Since news of the assault broke, Rihanna's CD sales reportedly went up 35 percent. I don't expect she'll see a similar bump now that she's seen as an enabler as well as a victim. But unlike her boyfriend, she can walk away and start fresh whenever she wants ... if she wants.

Pop music fans are fickle. The memory of Rihanna's battered face will fade and if Brown is never charged, all could be forgotten ... by some. If Brown is able to return to making mediocre pop music,  he'll be subject to unwelcome questions from the media, protests and threats for quite some time. Sort of like what awaits Michael Vick in a few months.  Chris Brown may not go to jail but he won't get his life back.

Image via Mavrixonline

She's a Lady

Lady Sovereign - So Human


After her on-stage meltdown in 2007, I thought pint-sized UK rapper Lady Sovereign was down for the count. The young spitter showed promise on her Def Jam debut, "Public Warning," with songs like "Those Were the Days." But things fell apart as she complained about being broke, the United States and not wanting to perform at a show in New York. Instead of leaving the stage, she stood there while the people who paid to see her rap watched her unravel. (The video has been removed from the youtubes by the people who do such things.) She managed to collect herself enough to continue the tour, but was off the radar for much of 2008.

Since Lily Allen seems to have given up rapping, the white girl lane in hip-hop is clear and the "SOV" is back. I kinda like it.

"Hammertime" for reality TV

MC Hammer won't go away. Although he hasn't had a hit record in ages, the dancer/rapper continues to find ways to creep into the public consciousness. Hammer a.k.a Stanley Burrell was last seen during the Super Bowl telling us how easy it is to turn our golden household items into cash money. Aside from his work in commercials, which often trades on his riches-to-rags life story, he's also been a role player on reality shows. Now, it's time for the Oakland rapper to take center stage. "Hammertime," a reality show about the dancer and his family, is being produced by A&E and will premiere later this year.

The show will feature Hammer, his wife and their brood: daughter Akieba, 21, nephew Jamarius, 18, daughter Sarah, 15, Stanley Jr, 13, aka Boobie, nephew Meschek, 12, Jeremiah, 10, and 3-year old Samuel.

"Each week we'll open our home to viewers to showcase the hectic pace of our lives and our eclectic family ..." said MC Hammer.

"Hammertime" is produced by 3 Ball Productions Inc., the people responsible for the reality shows "Biggest Loser" and "Beauty and the Gee." J.D Roth, Todd Nelson and MC Hammer are executive producers. Executive Producers for A&E are Robert Sharenow, Scott Lonker and former Wavelength cameraman Stephen Harris.

What Chris Brown Will Do Next

Now that singer-turnt-alleged assailant Chris Brown has found himself in such an unfavorable situation that he'd be willing to trade place with one of the townies in Tappahannock, Va., it's time for the fast dancer to make a move. Here's what I think might happen in the coming days.

Chris Breezy will announce he has voluntarily enrolled in anger management classes. He'll also mention that he plans to donate some loot to a battered woman's shelter. Then, he'll issue a vague statement, that kind of sounds like an apology, but really isn't. It may go something like this: "I regret that my actions have put those I love in bad positions, I'm just a young man who makes mistakes, I was an abused child, my dog ran away, blah blah blah." 

If all that is followed up with a hot album and he "beats" the court case, Chris Brown can come back. But if those pictures of Rhi-Rhi looking like Randall "Tex" Cobb ever come out, it might not matter. He can throw in some chopped meat and diced tomatoes and put it on a plate. 'Cause it's a wrap.

Welcome Home John Forte

Playing with Fame

I've never heard a complete song by Marques Houston, Immature or Imx and I probably never will. That's part of the reason why I handed over the hosting duties of Wavelength, the video show I produced for more than a decade and came to naught, to a younger person. Yasmine seems really comfortable with Mr. Houston in this clip, as if she didn't have to do her homework for this one. Maybe she once had a poster of Romeo, LDB and Batman over her bed. Immature was pretty huge back in the day, as I remember.

On this Wavelength appearance from 2003, Houston offers a humorous explanation for the group's demise and talks about working with R. Kelly and his manager Chris Stokes, both men who have a fondness for hanging with the youngsters. The singer followed his first album "MH," which he discusses here, up with two more albums, including his 2007 release "Veteran," which debuted at #1 on the Hip-Hop/R&B charts. It would appear that the career trajectory former this pop idol has traveled a direction inverse from what I would have predicted. But if you're judged by the company you keep, the singer might have already peaked.

Houston is one of the "stars" (The show will also feature Kel Mitchell, Bobby Brown and Keshia Knight-Pulliam) tied to BET's new reality show "Played by Fame," which premieres on Friday. The show pairs celebreties with fans, who become the victims of pranks played by the semi-famous. In BET's hands, I'm sure this show will be much worse than it sounds.

Notorious is the Illest

Finally got around to seeing "Notorious," last night. It's a solid film. The legacy of Christopher Wallace hasn't always been treated with reverence it deserves (Duets and Born Again) so a project like this "Notorious," had little room for error. Fortunately, the errors are little in this well-constructed and provocative biographical film directed by George Tillman (Men of Honor, Soul Food). 

The majority of the cast, especially the actor who plays Biggie, Jamal "Gravy" Woolard, succeeds in their portrayal of famous personalities and making you care about what happens to them, even though you know how it all ends.  Angela Bassett inhabits the spirit of Voletta Wallace, bringing the dignity and grace to the role that you would expect. Anthony Mackie and Derek Luke are horribly miscast as Tupac Shakur and Sean "Puff Daddy" Combs, however. 

Missteps aside, this is a good film that's worth a trip to the barbershop or movie theater near you.  

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Nas & Kelis: Oh Baby!

Kelis and Nas are having a child, according to Us Weekly. The girl known for her milkshake is three months along and sporting a baby bump, according to the magazine.

It's good to see these two still together. They've seen their share of drama during their breif union. (They married in 2005.) Kelis, while with Nas, was arrested in March of 2007 for screaming obscenties at police officers in Miami. (She was acquitted last year.) In recent months, Kelis has been the subject of sex tape rumors, which is usually a career boost, but the tape hasn't surfaced yet. Which may be for the best, as the footage is reportedly more embarrasing than titilating.

When Wavelength host Yasmine met Kelis, she had recently become engaged to God's Son and spoke about how being in love colored her approach to the material on "Tasty." The two young ladies also discuss fashion favorites, breakfast options and who's got the better milkshake.

The B.I.G. One That Got Away

"Nobody Is Invincible" scene from "Notorious"

As the release of "Notorious," nears I've been reflecting upon that era. I had a chance to interview Biggie when he visited our home base, the Phono Booth, in 1994. Unfortunately, I was sick and couldn't will myself to come to the record store. My partner, Dre, shot some footage of the rapper as he signed some autographs. I attempted to sell that tape to Nick Broomfield for his "Biggie and Tupac," documentary, but he passed.

When Biggie came to Richmond again, (Dec. 26, 1994) I missed out on another chance to to record him. The rapper was performing at a local nightclub (The Flood Zone) and there was a guy from Bad Boy running through the audience putting his hand over video cameras and making threats. I knew I couldn't get way with filming the show as my camera was about three times the size of what most people were using. Somebody else was able to shoot the whole show, however and I've been trying to get that tape for minute. 

I do have clear memories of that night. Keith Murray opened with an energetic performance which climaxed with an unfortunate decision to stage dive. The crowd of Richmonders parted and Murray landed hard and came up swinging. He didn't miss a line of "The Most Beautifullest Thing," but he was relieved of his pager, which was an expensive communications device back then. 

Biggie came out with Puff Daddy and members of the Junior Mafia. The rotund rapper's performance was understated, which complimented Puff's dancing and continuous ad-libs. Busta Rhymes came out for the "Flava In Ya Ear" remix, which nearly tore the packed club in half. 

Later on during the show, someone from the crowd climbed onstage and made a few steps in Big Poppa's direction, and was thrown off the side of the stage by a member of Big's crew.  He might be the only one has bad memories from that show. 

A Notoriously B.I.G. Movie

Newsweak published some shoddy articles on hip hop back in the day, as did many mainstream publications, and they've had to work hard to earn my trust. I stumbled across the first review I've seen of "Notorious,' the bio pic on the late Notorious B.I.G, at the doctor's office and since I had already perused last month's Family Circle, I dove in.

The write-up, written by veteran journalist Allison Samuels, is generally positive, which was a relief as I have been bracing myself for an exploitative take on the last years of hip-hop's golden era. Samuels didn't see it that way: "NOTORIOUS... managed to stun, unsettle and move me. It's been 11 years since the still-unsolved murder of the hip-hop icon, and the film does a wonderful job of revisiting that dangerous yet creatively rich time in music history. For a hip-hop fiend like me, it's a bittersweet journey to the days when the Cristal was overflowing, the bling was blinding and the performers burned brightly — but briefly."

You can read the whole thing here.

New Year's Evestyle

Before Skillz became a globetrotting entertainer and ghostwriter, he suffered the often-poor entertainment options of Richmond, Va. along with the rest of us. One night in the late nineties, he was among the unfortunate few who came to the Richmond Centre to see Black Moon and the rest of the Boot Camp Clique. None of the groups ever took the stage to perform and somebody lost quite a bit of money that night.

The only performance came from Skillz, who freestyled about an recent altercation with a security guard at the event, with some help from Jazzy Joyce.

2008: It's a Wrap .. up again.

One of the best since 2002.

Skillz - 2008 Wrap- Up.

Meet Swizz Beats

This footage was so lost, I still can't find it. The raw footage from this interview with producer and rapper Swizz Beats still eludes me, but I came across the Wavelength episode that featured an edited version recently.

Swizz aka Kasseem Dean became known for creating the sounds for the artists on the Ruff Ryders label in the late nineties. He was promoting his debut album "Presents G.H.E.T.T.O. Stories," in 2002, when we met him at the DTLR clothing store at Virginia Center Commons.

The producer has been a target of internet gossip sites recently, as reports have linked him to R&B songstress Alicia Keys. Swizz, who is separating from his wife of four years, denies the rumors.

Have a Merry One

Some last minute Christmas wrappin'.