50 Cent Holds A Funeral For Fat Joe, Mocks His Record Sales
The verbal sparring between 50 50 and Joe have been engaged in a well documented feud which began after the G-Unit honcho attacked Fat Joe for aligning with his rival Ja The bad blood between the two would go an extra notch last month when 50 took over New York radio station Power 105.1 and spent a good chunk of his air time attacking Joe's credibility as an artist. A few days later, Fat Joe and New York mixtape rapper Papoose would get into an altercation in North Carolina. Papoose was in the studio with 50 Cent during his air time on Power 105.1 and Joe confronted Pap about his affiliation with the G-Unit boss.
Fat Joe Pegs April Release Date For ‘J.O.S.E. 2’, Taps Lil Wayne & Akon
Fat Joe will be releasing his ninth solo studio album, Jealous Ones Still Envy 2 (J.O.S.E. 2) on April 7. The album will feature appearances from Ron Browz, Fabolous, Lil' Kim, T-Pain, Lil' Wayne and Akon. The first single off the album is "One" which features Akon. Fat Joe plans to drop the video for the single which was directed by Chris Robinson in the coming weeks.
Rap Music: Where Are the Politics Now?
By Kelsey McMillen
While I am far from a music buff, I tend to find myself drawn to lyrics. My interest in sociology leads me to study people and social movements, and rap music has evolved from the social movement that it represents. It seems to have lost its focus on poverty and the social problems faced by minorities, however, which was once a major feature of the rap music industry. Now it seems that the movie industry is trying to recreate what has been lost.
I’m not saying that rap music has lost its ability to reach the masses, but what was once a musical movement to let young African Americans and Latinos get their voices out in the 1970s has lost its political edge; now its focus is on sex and drugs. The movement started in New York City, combining traditional music forms with new elements (such as “splicing” and beat boxing) to create a catchy new form of music in a culture primarily dominated by rock music.
More important than the musical elements were the messages the music conveyed, especially awareness of the inequality of races, incomes, and other social problems such as violence in schools and a prevalent drug culture. What happened to the old legends and their opinions on the worries that African Americans face in urban neighborhoods? I am thinking about Coolio’s Gangsta’s Paradise or even as far back as Public Enemy’s Yo! Bum Rush the Show.
And while rappers may have changed styles, even rap songs in the late 1990s and the early part of this century were filled with socio-political messages about the problems faced by America’s lower class. We can remember 1998’s classic “Mo’ Money Mo’ Problems,” which focused on the problems that money can bring when spent on drugs and other reckless items in the lives of the rich and famous.
When I hear the popular rap music of today, I am a little shocked that the focus has shifted from the political edge that it once had to one on the violence, drug addictions, and extravagant lifestyles that it used to mock. It seems that now, instead favoring the music industry, films now portray those original ideas.
There have been several films about the lives of famous rappers (“8 Mile,” “Get Rich or Die Tryin’,” and now the most recent addition of “Notorious”) that tell the stories of real life people who experienced this side of American society. Is it possible that the hard edge of the music industry has been taken over by Hollywood? I am unsure if this is part of evolution or part of our generation’s disinterest in political music.
It would be a shame if the generation that helped to elect Barack Obama were not interested in bettering their own daily lives. It would be silly to say that the all rap and hip-hop music is offensive. After all, they are just giving the people what they want, but I think this says something about our interests as music consumers. I admit that there are catchy beats in most of today’s popular songs, but when I listen to the words, I no longer believe that their intention is to make you think. It is almost like the culture of the loud and active youth has completely disappeared.
Perhaps we are becoming a more politically active generation, but I think this should also extend to our media consumption. If we are not apathetic towards our politicians, then it follows that we should not be apathetic towards our entertainment industry. I am not saying that we should do away with current pop music culture; instead, we should focus on rebuilding the political edge that has been missing from popular songs for some time.
