Super Bowl In Gotham - Chris 'Preach' Smith

Picture Credit: Google
Today is the big day. Super Bowl XLVIII is set to
kick off in MetLife Stadium out in East Rutherford,
New Jersey. This is the first Super Bowl for the New
York/New Jersey area ever, and the first one held
outdoors in cold-weather since Super Bowl IV in
Tulane Stadium in New Orleans, Louisiana. Now
the main question is, am I excited about the big
game in my hometown? Yes…and no. Let me break
it down for you.

For one, I’m not a fan of the ancillary probems such
a big event brings with it. It’s not a secret that strip
clubs are going to be making serious bank throughout
the tri-state area, with a few celebs getting in on the
action. (Sue’s Rendezvous and Scandals may be on
high alert tonight.) But another dark element to the
game is of course, prostitution. In the past week
alone the city saw three rings shut down and a
disturbing case of a mother bringing her 15 year
old daughter up from Florida for ‘fetish stuff’. Make
no mistake, big events like Super Bowl Weekend are
a lure for such heinous acts. Hell, the World Cup this
summer in Brazil will probably see that traffic triple.
It’s unsettling especially when you think about the
fact that to date, 22,000 children are homeless in
New York City and there are those among them who
could be prey for Craigslist predators and such. The
true figures may not be known until later Monday.
Times Square may have gotten a total makeover
from its bad old days, but the perverts still creep 
around. 

Another issue that struck me as odd? The MTA and
their infrastructure issues. Super Bowl Weekend and
you STILL have scheduled track work on a couple
of major lines needed for people to get over to Jersey?
You would think that if these lines are being promoted,
you’d try to lessen the travel burdens. Thankfully, at
last check this morning they eased up a bit. But one
has to cast an eye at the Long Island Rail Road, which
saw a tunnel issue strand many passengers for a day.
It also would’ve been cool if they actually slashed fares
on the bridges and tunnels for a week before the game
too, but that’s asking too much. Also, Governor Christie?
You should be the LAST one trying to throw shots about
knowing where to go for the game considering your
political bridges are burning like Nero’s Rome at the
moment. Don’t fan the New York/New Jersey flames
when your administration has fumbled transit plans.

I do have to give props to the NFL for how they put
the whole experience together. Super Bowl Boulevard?
Complete with a tobaggan run 80 feet high? Count me
among those who scoffed at it, but it’s genius. The 
Hall Of Fame inductions at Radio City Music Hall, the 
free VH1 Super Bowl Blitz concerts…all great. It’s also
a good run for the city considering that the NBA is set
to host two All-Star Weekends here in the next four
years at last report, with Brooklyn shouldering half the
load. (Hopefully there will be no ‘Girls’ themed tours
conducted then, but I won’t put money on it.) And
I have been enjoying the rivalry between the Denver
Broncos and Seattle Seahawks before they get on the
field. I could’ve done without the Skittles/Marshawn
Lynch presser though, so it was wise for them to be
low-key given past events in Sanford, Florida. And can
the rest of the media PLEASE chill with the Richard
Sherman versus Peyton Manning angle? For one it
insults both men. Two, it’s been a couple of weeks. That
horse is in the glue factory. And three, you’re also
insulting Russell Wilson, Seattle’s outstanding second
year QB. Chill with the subliminal racial stuff(i.e. the
comparison of non-verbal Marshawn Lynch to the
Unabomber seen in the sports section of the New York
Daily News).

It’s going to be a fun evening catching the Super Bowl.
While it would be better to be there, for those of us
who don’t have a couple grand to shell out for tickets,
seeing it at home works just as well. Plus we don’t have
to deal with the inhumane snarl of traffic that is the
calling card of East Rutherford, New Jersey. So for
those of you who are going to watch, enjoy the game.
Don’t over-indulge, especially in booze. And sharpen
those inevitable comedy routines you’ve been saving
for social media and the parties you’ll hit about the
halftime show.  

Stop Pimping The Dream, Honor It - Chris "Preach" Smith

Today is the official holiday to honor and cherish the
legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. It’s a day we all 
can sit back and honor a man who fought for America
to honor its pledge to ALL of its citizens of freedom 
and equality, especially people of color and the poor
and the working class. 

But do you see that image at the top of this article?
THIS is how some people have chosen to commemorate
the day. Rather than focus on the struggles of MLK,
there are those who choose to solely look at it as 
just an extended weekend with a tiny bit of history
attached to it that affects them. It’s a chance to kick
back and party. And so, party promoters across the
country have taken it upon themselves to include
MLK in their flyers in the most appalling way. That 
flyer up top was to promote a party in Michigan. The
outrage it sparked led to the party being cancelled.
It is the vanguard  of a slew of flyers that have gotten
out there over the past few years. Another shameful
example is below this paragraph.


Listen, I’m all for long weekends that take you away from
your respective grind. But these flyers are nothing more 
than an example of the disconnect and the disrespect that’s
cloaked in misguided ‘salutes’ to those from the Civil Rights
Era. We’ve seen other instances in Lil Wayne’s poor lyrical
quip evoking the murder of Emmitt Till. There’s a part of 
our folk who are deluded by the ease of technology and 
social media and other trappings of advancement that the 
generations before them fought for. You can see it on Twitter
all the time. Ignorance and fame go together like rotgut
ripple and sunflower seeds in their minds. This is the kind
of mental & social environment that brings this about. Even
JDate has been caught advertising a 40 percent off sale
using Dr. King’s most famous phrase and likeness on Twitter.
And controversial animal rights organization PETA, who’s 
never seen an issue they cant’ troll in a left-handed racist
manner has issued a tasteless tweet today. Make no mistake,
MLK is being digitally pimped. And that’s disgusting.

Now of course, there will be those cynics and pragmatists
who will make matador moves around this. ‘It’s just flyers.’
‘It’s not that serious.’ And they would miss the point. Think
of this: the Congressional Black Caucus along with the King
family had to seriously fight to even get Dr. King’s birthday 
recognized nationally as a holiday. President Ronald Reagan
had opposed the bill at first claiming cost concerns. Senator
Jesse Helms even went so far as to smear MLK’s name with
a 2,000 page brief. Even when the bill became law in 1983,
states weren’t all on board. Arizona is the most prominent
example thanks to Senator John McCain’s stance which only
changed once that state lost a Super Bowl in 1993. Other
states had combined the day with other days. New Hampshire
is known to be the last state in the union to officially make
it a holiday…in 2000. Just because we’ve advanced a few 
steps doesn’t mean we’ve totally arrived. It’s already a bit 
bothersome that Martin Luther King and his legacy has had
to undergo a whitewash of sorts to make him nearly as 
one-dimensional as other prominent figures of color are 
portrayed. Those cats who dream up and think of these
flyers should know better. Especially when you consider 
all of those efforts to make MLK a Day of Service and all
of the people who volunteer. It’s time that they & others 
stop trying to pimp the life and legacy of Martin Luther King
like this. A flyer for a party shouldn’t come at the cost of
your dignity.  

Dr.Yusef Lateef & His Mark On Hip-Hop - Chris "Preach" Smith

Photo credit: Last.fm

A couple of days before Christmas, one of the 
great musical and spiritual giants made his
transition, Dr. Yusef Lateef was 93 years old,
and in that time he left an indelible mark on
jazz music and is arguably one of the pioneers
of the genre now referred to as ‘world music’.
But his impact was felt in other areas as well.
And I feel it’s only right to examine the scope
of his reach in a place some wouldn’t have
considered: hip-hop music.

Before I get into that in depth, I think a little
backstory on my introduction to Yusef Lateef
might be in order. I had gotten a taste for jazz
from early on in my teenage years. That interest
coincided with my father and a couple of my
uncles pulling my coat to some choice records.
One day I was up at an aunt’s in Harlem and
she had put on a record that was, in a word,
dreamy. As she and my parents talked, I found
myself caught up in the music so much that
I sneaked a look at the vinyl jacket. The song
was ‘Love Theme From ‘The Robe’, off of Dr.
Lateef’s Eastern Sounds album. From that point,
I always kept an eye out for any of his albums.
Not an easy task when you take into account
that Yusef Lateef has recorded and been featured
as sideman on as many as EIGHTY ALBUMS.

Dr. Yusef Lateef, as I learned more about him,
was as symbolic a figure for Black American history
as you can find. The important thing was, like
many trailblazers, he did it without immediate
fanfare. Part of that lies within the calm and
focused determination he possessed. How so?
The man decided he was going to be a musician
at the age of 12 and not only got his first saxophone
six years later, he even wound up touring with
jazz greats like Cannonball Adderley and Dizzy
Gillespie. Having to stop touring due to his wife’s
illness, Dr. Lateef wound up coming home to
Detroit, Michigan and worked in the Chrysler
factory all while gaining a formal education at
Wayne State University and a spiritual education
thanks to his becoming a follower of Islam.(Side
note: he was one of the first musicians on record
to convert to Islam. The particular community he
joined, the Ahmadiyya, is a preeminent reformist
sect within Islam itself stressing humanity first.
This was a contrast to the rise of the Nation Of 
Islam during the time.) This path stimulated such
growth in Dr.Lateef that he would wind up being
a professor and research fellow at the Manhattan
School of Music in addition to earning a doctorate
at the University of Massachusetts at Amherst where
he taught until his passing. He also spent four 
years as a senior research fellow at the University
of Ahmadubelo in Nigeria. 

Fast forward to 2000. This was a time where the
split between underground hip-hop and commercial
rap was beginning to solidify. I found myself down
in the Village, hitting up different spots for new
music. One track that caught my ears was a joint
from MF Doom’s first album, Operation Doomsday.
‘Who You Think I Am’ had a sick beat, the drumline
having a funky stutter, and it was all tied together
with a mystical flute. It added extra richness to the
gritty track that also featured Rodan, King Ghidra,
and Megalon. There was also a timeless effect with
the track, despite the Iomega zip drive reference
(remember those?) A while later, one dude I knew
who was a crate digger and I got to talking about
the track. He then hits me off with a copy of Dr.
Lateef’s classic album, Yusef Lateef’s Detroit Latitude
42° 30’ Longitude 83°. As soon as I play ‘Eastern
Market’, I FLIP OUT. There was the same flute from
the MF Doom track!


Doom wouldn’t be the only one to find some
inspiration in Dr. Lateef’s music. The Beastie Boys,
Scientifik, Aesop Rock, and others have sampled Dr.
Lateef’s albums, and have made some dope songs in
turn. One of my favorite Nujabes tracks, ‘Feather’
with Cise Starr & Akin of CYNE off of Modal Soul
gets its cue from that same track I heard years
ago in my aunt’s place. It proves without a doubt 
that Dr. Lateef’s music lent itself to the culture of
hip-hop because of its dynamic reach and fluidity.
He was one of the first to utilize Eastern instruments
like the shenai, arghul and algaita in conjunction
with the oboe and tenor saxophone. Eastern Sounds
and Detroit Latitude 42° 30’ Longitude 83° still get
heavy play in my house. Another link to be appreciated
is Dr. Lateef’s refusal to be fit in a box with his music,
exemplified by his shunning of the term ‘jazz’ for
his own creation, ‘autophysiopsychic music’. Add
to that the fact that the man won a Grammy and
was still performing until last summer. He once said
“My music is, like my religion, supposed to take you
from this life into the next.” And as he is in his next
life, I do hope many others can grasp and appreciate
just how much spiritual experience Dr. Yusef Lateef
brought to jazz, hip-hop and the world. 

The Diva & The Digital Panagea - Chris "Preach" Smith

Photo Credit: Columbia Records
Let me begin by stating that this isn’t yet
another Beyonce’ think-piece to add to the
multitude currently out there since she 
sprung her latest self-titled album on an
unsuspecting world nearly two weeks ago.
I’m not knocking her achievement but 
instead, I think there’s a couple of things
brought to light in the wake of her album
release that haven’t been fully examined.

I got inspired to write this partially because
of a funny little encounter I had the night
before. I met up with an out-of-town friend
who was back in NYC for the holidays. We 
go to grab coffee at a Panera Bread and 
wind up striking a conversation with the
young sister behind the counter. (Shoutout
to Isis, thank you mama!)It starts with her
cracking a joke on my friend’s H&M bag 
saying, ‘You better be careful, the Beyonce’
Illuminati might have you with the looks of
that bag.’ We all laugh about it, and talk 
about the album. Out of the three, I confess
that I haven’t really heard it. But the convo
stood out because of the impact of the album
with NO press whatsoever. The power that is
word-of-mouth. And it’s helped out the superstar
in a major way, with it not only going above
platinum level in sales but also being the fastest
selling album ever on iTunes. But let’s be real;
while that viral success is definitely her genius
work, she has a mighty hefty machine behind
her in her label. And she also has to be thankful
for those who have already been clearing the 
way for her in this fashion, primarily in hip-hop.

Hip-hop artists with substance to their music 
have relied more and more on digital delivery
to get more sales and acclaim from the public
without having to fork over a generous share
to a label. Take the output from this year alone;
you’ve got two albums that weren’t sold in a
physical store at all that are tops amongst all
the other hip-hop albums. Run The Jewels, the
self-titled album from the mighty duo of El-P
and Killer Mike has gotten(and rightfully so) 
major love. Keep in mind that the album was
free and it had a bit of promotion before. It also
was solely digital. The other example that comes
to mind is the Brownsville, Brooklyn MC Ka’s 
rugged third album, The Night’s Gambit. The
entire range of promotion from the album came
from Ka’s DIY procress and through videos that
he directed and shot himself. And to bring the
point home, look at Chance The Rapper’s Acid
Rap, being hailed as an album of the year by 
some. A mixtape of sorts by a cat from Chicago
who was below the radar until that dropped.
Their success was built upon that movement
of artists making their work known through online
channels. Whether it’s through mixtape websites
like DJBooth.net or Datpiff.com, or in the usage
of outlets like Bandcamp and Soundcloud, there 
is literally no middleman in sight. And Beyonce’s
move put a bold underlined stroke to that point.

The success rate has been mixed, mainly because
there is a fickle side to today’s music listener. A 
good deal of them tend to go with whatever is 
popular because the PR machines for the artists
and their respective labels craft images to get you
to buy the music. The end result? It’s not so much
the talent that gets rewarded, but the effectiveness
of the campaign. If you did away with the excessive
promotions for some artists, I guarantee you they 
wouldn’t be as relevant as they are now. Labels 
balance their books on an artist or group being 
able to recoup their promo money via sales and 
other factors. So they stand to gain by lulling you
into thinking something is hot whether it’s by playing
the song on the radio 3 times an hour or slipping it
into ads. For those who don’t have the finances 
behind them, direct digital distribution is the way 
to go. It’s also a way for those music artists to fully
reinforce their position in the game. Take Talib Kweli.
He dropped Prisoner of Consciousness earlier this year
and wound up dropping Gravitas via his own imprint,
KweliClub.com. All while prepping for and embarking
on a tour with the latest music sensation, Macklemore.
He was repping Gravitas for two months prior to its
release date - two days after Beyonce dropped hers.
So you’ve got an artist in Talib making serious moves
and utitlizing emerging industry innovations. Will he
get the proper acclaim for it in a widespread fashion?
I hope so.

And there’s the rub - we’re at a key moment in time
with regards to not only how the music is getting to 
the masses, but what kind of music they’re willing to
consume. Beyonce’s album dropped at a time where
NO Black acts topped the Billboard chart at last report.
That’s a first in the chart’s history and marks a distinct
change seen in less than a decade. Consider that a 
few new artists like the producer/MC Oddisee, owe
a great deal to the power of word-of-mouth. Her success
scares corporate giants and shines a light on the bulwark
of artists who paved the way for her to blow up. Look
at the response from Target and Amazon, refusing to 
sell copies of her album. To do so in their minds would
be to add to a death knell for CD’s that began with the
rise of Napster and has eradicated companies like The
Wiz, Blockbuster and Virgin Megastore. Labels are nervous
because that added cost of CD production they could
shank an artist for in their deal would be gone. But the
indie artist and their respective distribution teams don’t
worry about that too much. This is freedom; there’s
more room for creativity and innovation. Groups like
Mello Music, 9th Wonder’s Jamla Records, Fools’ Gold
and others all get to fully present their music to more
eyes now than ever. They’ve been changing the game,
expanding it from when cats like DJ Drama, J.Period,
Green Lantern and others would break exclusives on
their mixtapes. (That’s another article in of itself.) In
some ways, it’s like a return to the old days where there
was a multitude of record labels. Like Panagea breaking
apart. So, Beyonce’s sudden album drop may just be a
louder bell being rung in the ears of the powers that be,
buoyed by the continued progress of hip-hop artists who
don’t match her same widespread appeal. And maybe this
will allow for that emerging better balance in hip-hop to
gain a more solid footing. 
 

Negotiate To Excellence - Chris "Preach" Smith

This past Friday, Robinson Cano, formerly the second baseman
for the New York Yankees became a part of the Seattle Mariners.

And if you’re a pragmatist, this was what was going to happen.

It was in the cards the moment the winter season for Major
League Baseball began. When word leaked that Cano and his
agent, Jay-Z of Roc Nation Sports wanted a deal valued at
300 million, it was a wrap. There was no way that the Yanks
would pull the trigger on a deal like that. So when they wound
up signing Jacoby Ellsbury from the World Champion Boston
Red Sox, it paved the way for Cano to get his deal. Not the
full amount, but close. And while it’s a coup for him, it’s also
a coup for Shawn Carter and Roc Nation Sports. Much to the
chagrin of other agents.

Whatever misgivings you may have about Jay-Z, justified
or not, you have to admit that this is a notable accomplishment.
He played this shrewd the whole way. He knew that Brian
Cashman and the Yankees wouldn’t pay Cano that amount
of money while still suffering with the rest of the bloated
contract bearing embattled slugger Alex Rodriguez’s name.
A contract like that for a 31 year old second baseman is
dangerous. Any large contract in professional sports is.
Slowly but surely, the plan was enacted to get Cano in the
Emerald City. First, he had Cano basically claim that he 
really didn’t want 300 million and any reports stating so
were false. Then Jay aligned himself with an established
giant in representation, CAA. They would help with setting
up paperwork and smoothing anything over. The media
conversation picked up speed with Jose Cano, Robinson’s
father stating to some effect that Yankees didn’t want him.
This proved to be the first barb, considering that Jose himself
was part of the Yankees’ farm system to begin his career
in 1980. The Yankees then opted to sign Ellsbury to that
seven year deal worth 153 million. This, despite rumblings
that Seattle had expressed interest in Cano. Now here is
the kicker - Seattle basically was bidding against THEMSELVES.
There’s precedents for such deals of course. And it’s the 
hallmark of superb negotiations. No other team was going
to really bite the bullet. And Seattle needed a marquee
talent. Now the race was on to finalize the deal, but word
came that Seattle was miffed that Jay-Z asked for a tenth
year. Of course media outlets had a field day raking him
over the coals. But the deal got done. And the final twist
came when Robinson basically claimed that he didn’t get
any respect from the Yankees during the process.

Now when you look at everything in totality, you note that
both Cano and the Yankees got what they wanted. Cano
basically will claim the Yanks disrespected him, but if they
offered a deal that amounted to him getting one million
less than he’s currently getting, the claim makes no sense.
Unless you’re trying to not look like the bad guy because
you want to get paid. Cano’s deal is big from Seattle because
their highest paid free agent deal up to this point was Adrian
Beltre. The total? 54 million. It’s a huge gamble for a team
that hasn’t had any real relevance since those glory days
of Ken Griffey Jr. and a younger A-Rod among others. Plus
the front office has been dysfunctional to say the least. As
for the Yankees, they stuck to their guns. But they can’t
be seen as spendthrifts, not after the Ellsbury deal and the
later deal for Carlos Beltran. If you look at it all, they paid
close to the same amount Cano’s getting for two players.
Their PR spin is to pretty much be surprised at Cano’s remarks
but say nothing to quell those critics of the move. To a
predictable degree, the news outlets here have given opinions
ranging from balanced to outraged. And there was one paper
that chose to run a scandal story about a personal situation
involving Cano and child support. A story we may not have
heard if he remained in pinstripes. The clear winner in all of this?
Jay-Z.


Why wouldn’t he be? This deal proved that he can confidently
run with the big dogs in baseball. Netting your client the third
largest deal in MLB history will also make you attractive to 
other players looking for that huge payday. There are those
who look at this and see Cano making a huge mistake, He’s
leaving a premier franchise in New York City. He’s leaving
behind a considerable Dominican fanbase in the Bronx and
Washington Heights. But if you think Hova hasn’t considered
these risks, you underestimate his attention to detail. Think
about it: he chose Cano to be his first MLB client. Cano is a
well-liked guy in baseball. Devoid of scandal unlike A-Rod and
another rumored potential Roc Nation Sports client, Miguel
Cabrera of the Detroit Tigers. Another factor is that with 
Cano, Jay-Z has found someone who can not only fully make
an impact with the multitude of Latino baseball fans but also
broaden his appeal to younger fans. The hip-hop connection
can’t be overlooked here as well; Cano’s last birthday party
in Europe was where Timbaland dropped a cut from the project
he’s set to release with Jay next year. Cross-promotion in
overdrive. It’s easy for someone like Scott Boras, Cano’s former
agent, to make catty remarks about this. But behind those 
remarks lies a concern at the way things are changing. There
have been instances of non-agents getting into the game with
success. Actor Duane Martin is a key example with his Impact
Sports agency, boasting Bartolo Colon as a client among others.
But a musician…a RAPPER? Believe there were some snide words.
Folks like Boras could laugh at rappers becoming agents in the past.
Look at Master P and No Limit Sports. The New Orleans rapper
and mogul had made some real cheese in the late 90’s. Sports
was the next step, and so the agency was formed with NBA
players like Ron Mercer and Derek Anderson signing up. The
big coup was former University Of Texas running back Ricky
Williams. But his deal with the New Orleans Saints was a real
piss-poor contract. That was the beginning of the end for No
Limit Sports. A mistake Jay wasn’t going to make.

Robinson Cano is embracing this change along with the money
easily. He’s got a fresh new beard, which was a no-no when
he played with the New York Yankees and their rules against
excessive facial hair. Will he continue to put up numbers for
a ballclub that hasn’t sniffed the playoffs in twelve years? Who
knows? What we do know is that Jay Z negotiated to excellence
and added another feather to his cap. Now we’re waiting on
the next video at Safeco Field.