Vado - Goodfellas

Vado - Goodfellas

Remember back in the mid-90s when hip-hop was obsessed with the Mafia, Mafioso style and the like? Acts like Biggie and the Firm drew inspiration from old mobster movies like The Godfathter series, Donnie Brasco, Reservoir Dogs and of course, Goodfellas. Vado was probably wee little slime back when Frank White and his hip-hop conglomerates were doing their dirt among the backdrop of New York City, but that doesn't mean he can't try his hand at a mobster mentality on wax. On this cut from his upcoming album Slime Flu, the Harlem MC doles out some verbal ethers to a luxurious instrumental. Vado doesn't skip a beat lyrically, either, dropping rhymes about the roundtable of Goodfellas he's got on tap, and the wares they distribute Uptown. Check out Vado's stab at the Mafioso lifestyle...

Vado - Celebration

Vado - Celebration

Late on this one, so sue me. I've been telling cats about Vado since I heard him on Fabolous' remix for 'Body Bag' and the Slime Flu has been infiltrating the interwebs slowly but surely. After being pushed back from a July 6th (my birthday wasn't the same) to and October 12th release date, Slime Flu will finally hit the shelves as the hip-hop world turns to Harlem once again. I won't be cliche and call it a Harlem Rennaissance or a New York resurgence, though it would seem as though NYC hip-hop's chances have been few and far between. Whatever your stance on the status of the Empire State's rap scene, you've got to admit that Vado is quite the MC. Check the track...

SIDENOTE: If I see another piece of cover art in the Kanye West mold, I will stab myself with a soldering iron...

Shawn Caliber - 24 Hours to Live Freestyle

A logo to most.. A banner for a genre


S-Cal - 24 Hours to Live Freestyle

Two days ago, I had somewhat (I say somewhat because I kind of already knew) of a revelation: NYC hip-hop, while starting to have somewhat of a resurgence, isn't making moves. Our region has fallen by the wayside either due to silly beefs, bad albums or just general inactivity. Besides Jay-Z, I can't see any NYC rappers out here getting the numbers or press that they should. It's almost as if NYC has grown complacent with it's hip-hop, content to rest on the laurels of its innovators, rather than carry on tradition. I question whether the likes of Big L, Biggie and Big Pun (RIP) would be pleased to see the city that they left and the music that came from it. I'm not too sure if they would be, so I started tweeting, airing my grievances with NYC hip-hop and it's latency. From those tweets, a challenge was issued:


Shawn Caliber answered that call, and with the quickness. I shot him over the instrumental of the classic featuring Ma$e, DMX and the Lox, and he came up with a freestyle detailing what he would do with his last 24 on this planet. I'm not going out on a limb and saying NYC rap will be back tomorrow (it's far from that). Yet, with artists like S-Cal on the come-up, it's hard to see the city being down on its luck for much longer. Check out the homie Shawn Caliber ripping up '24 Hours to Live' with a nice 16...

PS: Be on the lookout for #NewYorkTimes... Don't say I never told you

Dear Officer Carey (re: Sean Bell shooting)

via The Gothamist:

A police officer involved in the 2006 shooting of Sean Bell, the Queens man who was killed in a barrage of police bullets hours before his wedding, is now suing Bell's estate. The Post reports, "Police Officer Michael Carey's lawsuit says Bell was boozed-up when he got behind the wheel of the car after his bachelor party on Nov. 25, 2006, and also claims the doomed groom failed to wear glasses or contact lenses despite having poor eyesight."

According to the suit, "[Officer Carey] suffered serious leg injury when [Bell] crashed into the vehicle he was riding in before Officer Carey ever drew his gun and fired a shot." The lawsuit is part of a federal counter-claim "in response to a wrongful-death lawsuit being pursued by Bell's fiancée, Nicole Paultre Bell, against him and the other four cops involved." (The cops were acquitted in 2008 bench trial.) Earlier this month, Carey's lawyer argued that his client should not be part of the wrongful-death lawsuit because Carey, who fired three bullets at one of Bell's friends, believed he and other police officers were in danger.

When one gets cleared of a crime, ala OJ Simpson in 1995 or Snoop Dogg in 1993, it's natural for them to lay low for a while; to keep their noses clean and not to make too much noise on the scene. The person basks in their newfound freedom and disappears, perhaps trying to piece their life back together after months, maybe years, of damage. Yet, for some people, getting off scot-free just isn't enough. I suppose that's your case, Officer Carey. You and two of your pigs comrades shot and killed a man (not even a black man, in case you want to call BS on the race card), and injured his friends, all of whom were unarmed. You claimed self-defense when he ran into your car with his while you were shooting him. Then, when put on trial, you get off on all cases without so much as a hiccup in the trial. To me, that would be a gift: to knowingly end another person's life and to not have to be accountable for it. I would just walk away and not even question what happened until I'd cleared my head.

You, on the other hand, aren't satisfied with just getting off on the murder wrap. You'd rather pour salt, lemon juice and 100-proof vodka into a gaping wound by essentially opening up the case again. Why are you now counter-suing for an injury you received 4 years ago? The man you were 'accosting' on November 25, 2006 is DEAD. He no longer lives. His family, friends and fiancée all live with the fact that you took his life from him, and took him from them. And now, you want their money too? Your leg is going to heal, if it hasn't already!! What about Sean Bell's life? You can patch up a leg. You can't breathe life back into someone. Officer Carey, I'm not sure if you're remotely remorseful about what you and those other cops did, but it sure doesn't look like it. For that, you ought to be ashamed. And the NYPD that you work for should be just as ashamed for harboring people like you. It's as if you don't want to put the case to rest, or better yet you can't. Whatever the case, let me take off my conspiracy theorist hat. We all know what you did was wrong. Apparently you didn't and think you should be compensated for taking a life. Way to protect and serve...

Greetings From: Manhattan, NYC

via The New York Times:

Eventually, the Rolling Stone cover line “Lil Wayne Goes to Jail” will be correct, but not today. On Tuesday a court spokesman in Manhattan told The Associated Press that sentencing for the rapper Lil Wayne had been postponed because of a basement fire at a courthouse.

Lil Wayne, whose real name is Dwayne Carter, was to be sentenced in State Supreme Court on charges stemming from a July 2007 incident in which a loaded .40-caliber semiautomatic gun was found on his tour bus. (He pleaded guilty to attempted criminal possession of a weapon in October.) The hip-hop star was originally scheduled to be sentenced in February, but received a postponement so he could undergo a dental procedure. A new sentencing date was not immediately given.

Greetings from Manhattan, New York City, where Lil' Wayne is living up to his namesake as the 'Fireman'. Today, Weezy F. Baby aka Dwayne Carter was supposed to be sentenced for felony gun possession. However, around 10:45 or so, the courthouse was set on fire. Now, I know this is somewhat fishy, but I'm gonna give Wayne the benefit of the doubt. That's not to say that he had nothing to do with the incident, but stranger things have happened (OJ Simpson should know). At this point, it goes without saying that maybe Wayne will never go to jail. First it was dental surgery, then it was the snowy weather in NYC, and now it's a fire. I shudder to think about what the next delay will be caused by. Then again, I definitely want to see how long this man can go without going to jail. After a while, wouldn't you want to just get it over with, though???

Revolving Door = Electricity??

I love ideas like this because they're so simple, but can make such a huge difference if installed on a wide scale. The GOOD people at FluxLab, all working out of Brooklyn Tech, have created the NYC Revolution Door. The invention uses the revolutions from a revolving door to generate electricity. The fact that revolving doors are a staple of damn near every Manhattan office building makes this idea invaluable. The incentive-based electronic board connected to the door is all the more reason for people to want to use revolving doors. At this juncture in human history, we'd be stupid not to explore every avenue of energy and energy creation possible; even the little things. Check the video out...

21-7 Magazine Re-Launch Party

Got this from the homie Deadstock Ric. The good people at 21-7 Magazine are relaunching their magazine after a nice little absence and are having a shindig to celebrate. For those of you who don't know, 21-7 is an online magazine dedicated to urban culture. If you're in NYC on Wednesday the 27th, you should check out the party (complete with goodies & giveaways). The jawn (yeah, I said jawn) is at 55 East 21 Street between 5th and 6th. Take pictures if you go...

Dear NYC Drug-Use Initiative

via New York Times:

A New York City-funded guidebook for heroin users offers information on how to prepare drugs carefully and care for veins to avoid infection.

The state's top official with the Drug Enforcement Administration calls the ''Take Charge Take Care'' guide a ''step-by-step instruction on how to inject a poison.'' DEA special agent-in-charge John Gilbride says the handout is disturbing. The city's Department of Health and Mental Hygiene printed about 70,000 copies.

A health official says the goal is to promote health and save lives. Assistant Commissioner Daliah Heller says instructions on how to perform injections were included because there's ''a less harmful way to inject.''

Sadly, his is what NYC heads are paying taxes for. Since when is teaching people how to use a needle for drug purposes safely promoting safety at all? NYC, you've always had a stigma as being a haven for drugs (let's not get into the definition of drugs). Whether it's the trademark weed spots at bodegas or underground ecstasy raves, your underground drug culture has never been a secret. In fact, many people have tried to bring this culture to the forefront, especially when dealing with marijuana. That said, you don't have to inject weed, as well as weed being linked to decriminalization both in the city, and nationwide.

Therein lies the problem, NYC. Heroin use has always been one of the most heralded drugs of mortality (that means people die from it, a lot), and of transmitting diseases. The latter of the two is what you are trying to discourage through this program. To that, I have one question: Why not just try and deter the use of heroin altogether?? Since when has the 'safe' use of a hard drug overshadowed the use of the drug?? I'm not sitting here downplaying the fact that drug use increases one's chance for disease. I'm simply stating that there are better ways to keep people from catching the germ. Maybe instead of trying to teach people how to use drugs in a safer way, you should be teaching people NOT to use drugs. Trust me, I've seen enough junkies and addicts in my day (a relatively short period) to know that they don't give two flying shits about how they shoot up. Regardless of whether the needle was fresh from the hospital, or they found it in a pile of shit, they're going to shoot up. Why not kill two birds with one stone and eradicate heroin use? You could probably use the same forum (flyers) and do society one less evil, NYC. Lord knows, if your pamphlet is the last one a junkie reads, why not have one trying to help, not enable him?