Dear Glenn Beck

These are your people, Glenn... What exactly are they taking America back from again??

There are only a handful of people that I would actively wish physical harm on. Tom Brady and Comcast's CEO are two that I can think of offhand, but you, Mr. Beck have officially made the list of 'People I Want to See Literally Break a Leg'. Glenn, I really tried hard not to cast your name asunder, because, you try. You try to make your biting racist rhetoric as safe as possible. You try to keep your xenophobic undertones under wraps, by dubbing everything a fight for 'American values'. Hell, you even try to keep everything multicultural by having rallies on the same day as Martin Luther King Jr. I can understand why you want to play the middle ground. At the same time, I despise everything about you that I just stated.

Glenn, let's get straight to the point, because mincing words doesn't pay bills: You are underhandedly racist, conservatively short-sighted, and overzealous in your definition of 'American'. It seems like every time I hear your name in the media, it's not in relation to anything positive or uplifting. Your rally for 'Restoring Honor' was anything but honorable, regardless of how peaceful a picture you wanted to paint. If it isn't calling Obama out on his birthplace (for the 1000th time), it's promoting fear among an American people that are already confused as hell. You see, Glenn, you're the type of person who sees the idiocy going on in our country, and rather than inform the public, you use it to mold their opinions to your sick, twisted, white-picket fantasy of what you think America should be. What you fail to realize though, is that NO ONE IS INHERENTLY AMERICAN!! Don't you realize that this land was shanghai'ed from Native Americans, worked on the backs of slaves and immigrants and built to greatness by the descendants of people from all over the world? Even in your talks of 'returning America to God', you fail to realize that God doesn't see color. He doesn't see race, gender, ethnicity or country of origin. And he certainly doesn't see the size of your wallet or your socioeconomic bracket. I've always wondered where people like yourself found these doctrines. Are we reading the same Bible?

Glenn, its obvious you have more on your agenda than 'American values'. You're a Class-A fear-monger. You're fodder for the bass-ackwards inbred folk who still think it's 1896 and that Africa is devoid of light. You speak to the (non)sensibilities of White Americans who, for the first time in their lives, are realizing that they aren't the only ones who matter. It's hilarious how people act when they aren't as powerful anymore, especially you. You start acting as if your victims. Of what I have no clue, considering you (white male) have been the world's ruling class since people knew what skin color was. Glenn, take my advice. Stop believing that America is the land of opportunity for only your kind. Not only will that mode of thinking hold back the country, it will probably wipe you and your kind out before you think. Hate written in pretty, rosy letters is still hate. You should know that better than anyone, but hey what do I know. 'Restoring honor' apparently has a race qualification, so I might have to just sit this one out....

Justin Bieber x Kanye West x Raekwon - Runaway Love (Remix)

Justin Bieber x Kanye West x Raekwon - Runaway Love (Remix)

Say what you will about Justin Bieber's place in pop music and his diabolically squeaky-clean image, the young man knows his hip-hop, evidenced by interviews and numerous cosigns. Plus, the young man sounds like a damn cherub. Add his charms, a verse from Rae and Ye, and an interpolation of the Wu classic 'Wu-Tang Clan Ain't Nothing to F*ck With', and you have one hell of a crossover hit. Kanye was always a Bieber fan, but the Raekwon cosign was a pleasant surprise. It's refreshing to see that musicians aren't above accepting other types of music or other musicians, regardless of genre. To all of you 'hip-hop' purists saying Rae is selling out by adding Bieber, please go fall into a woodchipper. It's sad that people can't show flexibility without stans getting their panties in a bunch about 'real hip-hop'. Take the chewsticks out of your butt, turn off your Atmosphere album, and figure out why you're mad, while the rest of the world rocks out to this trill Justin Bieber chorus...

Dear Cynical Rap Fans

Bun tore this guy a new one and made this message clear: Respect the MC, especially if you can't do it.

One of my friends dropped a serious gem on me a few weeks back: being a blogger (especially dealing with music or sports) is essentially being a professional hater. Now all you bloggers and hip-hop fans out there, let that statement sink in and marinate for a few seconds. As a blogger or a rap fan, you specialize in hating. You might very well love and adore a few acts, genres and movement among the greater movement of hip-hop, yet a great deal of your time is spent actively, vehemently and vocally disliking other entities, if not for page views and ratings, then for e-props and an ego boost. That said, I can't even distance myself from that bug. This blog, in many a post, has been a forum for airing out my grievances with issues in rap, rather than bigging up those that I side with. The whole hip-hop universe is riddled with hate, from angry Twitter rants from artists and fans alike (guilty), to random beefs, to the blogs themselves being partial. It's as if we've forgotten the fact that hip-hop was supposed to be fun at one point. Gone is the jovial, gregarious nature of the inner-city art form, as hip-hop becomes cold, impersonal and pugnacious behind computer screens. You'd think that at a showcase of the purest form of hip-hop congregation, the freestyle battle, heads would be able to chime in on the victors without the jeering and hate coming from the crowd. That clearly wasn't the case.

Bun B is the trillest. Point blank. If you have any questions as to why all of his albums include the word 'trill', it is because Bun is simply trill. That's why you can't be mad at Bun issuing a challenge to one of you, a cynical, hating, hip-hop concert dweller, probably fresh off his millionth listen to Atmosphere's 'Overcast' and donning his traditional backpack. As a cynical hip-hop fan, this fool jeered and taunted the contestants from the crowd for the whole show, only to be called out on stage by The Trill One and fumble over a really, really shitty freestyle. That freestyle, and the deafening boos from the crowd not only gave him a first class ticket to the exit, they showed the dangers of being a hater.

Cynical hip-hop fans, how many of you can rap? ...I mean really rap. How many of you can piece together a verse over a beat, or write an ill chorus, or go off the top of the dome in a battle? How many of you can rock a crowd and have thousands singing along to your songs? *crickets* My guess is few, if any of you; myself included. Too often do you find that the ones criticizing the art form the most are the least exceptional at that artform. They say those who can't do, critic, and those who can't critic simply sit on the sidelines giving sideways comments. We can all name at least one head whose life goal and prerogative is to rake muck at every possible instance. Unfortunately, not all of them have or will have the blessing of being publicly embarrassed by a hip-hop legend to humble them. That said, it's not really our job to put you in your place, oh scornful hip-hop fan. Where did all of this hate come from anyway? Whether you're a failed rapper, producer, or manager who started a blog, or you've had a hip-hop snob license for over a decade, keep the hate to a minimum, especially if you can't rap to save a second of your life. Lord knows I might have needed this letter more than you, to remind me not only that not everything has to be battle, but also to work on my freestyling, in the event that I ever do get called out. To you, oh cynical hip-hop fan, I hope the same wisdom be imparted. Maybe you'll get to see the show instead of getting booed out of the venue...

Dear (the) Dream

If you are around excitable cats or sensitive glass, please DO NOT play this song..

Now, for the past 4 years or so, I've sat back and watched you, Terius Nash. I've watched you turn R&B from an art for sangers (not singers) to a falsetto-laced, synthesized snore-fest for fat producers. After hearing this, I have to demand this: dude, please just give up. I know that Christina Milian has you a little hot under the collar (for God's sake, I'd feel the same way). But that doesn't mean you can resurrect classic R&B tracks whenever you feel inspired. You see, Dream, Aaliyah could actually sing and perform, two things that I have yet to hear that you can do. Sure, you're the 'Radio Killa,' but what does killing the radio even mean? That you make catchy singles that are cool to ride out on a Saturday night to? Sure. That your songs are about as deep as the kiddie pool? Absolutely. It even might mean that you are somewhat of a genius when it comes to that niche. However, the mark of a good artist in today's music industry is an artist that knows when to stay in their lane, and when to expand. Trey Songz can throw together the sing-songy raps like R. Kelly, so it's understandable. Hell, Drake can hold a tune, so he sings every once in a while (more often now than earlier). You, however, should do no such thing. Regardless of how many records you sell, or features you're on, or whatever metric you want to use as proof that you're a good musician, you CANNOT SING. No, it's not me hating. It's me having respect for the artform. Maybe you should learn some too. Lord knows you wouldn't catch Johnny Cash rapping or Lil'Wayne trying to play guitar. Wait... Wayne had that 'Rebirth' album.... Anyway, please hand in your pass to cover the R&B hits of the 90's. You're doing yourself, and those stars (dead or alive) a disservice...

This image should be a PSA for artists stepping out of their lane...