Long time no see

I'm back from my whirlwind tour of the world of love, loss and exciting new possibilities! I have made a commitment to blog more b/c I have crazy fantasies of being a fabulous blogger who gets quoted and whom people know. Hmmm... we'll see if this comes to pass. Look for more updates soon.

Politics, Race & Music

Last night I got a text from my bestie that she had just been published on a blog. Her topic is “popPolitics.” Please read it and discuss. The blog got me thinking about the growing synergy of music & politics that hasn’t really been experienced before.

Music has always had something to say about the current state of humanity. Music has been and will continue to be a powerful platform to get out the message that the public is not impressed, amused or confused by the policies, laws, amendments, etc that our (s)elected officials put into place. But, as my über intelligent/sassy/fabulous best friend so eloquently points out, “celebrity supporters are becoming deciding factors in the upcoming presidential campaign. (Alexandria Lloyd)

Ms. Lloyd {if you’re nasty} discusses the video that superstar producer Will.i.Am. made this year in support of Obama.



Wait…. Instead of the voice of discontent music has now become a platform to support a political candidate!?! Yes, and the key here is that this is something unprecedented in US history as is the presidential race. Barack Obama is a black man, a son of an immigrant, of mixed race and from a lower income background. Perhaps most shocking of all is that he has a real chance of being the president. This is truly a historic moment and has been throughout the primary season. This country had a Black man and a woman throwing in their hats for possible nominations. Revitalizing the country in a way that hasn’t happened before & also exposed some of the wounds & pain that people carry around daily but that for various reasons have been hidden {hello racism & misogyny my constant oppressors!}

SO, is that why music has supported this unlikely candidate? I think yes and the conditions of the time are ripe for change. Furthermore, the international power that Hip Hop (and US black culture, please never forget that the 2 are inextricably linked) has is also unprecedented. In less than 3 decades the sounds, fashion, language, style & voice (read=culture) of a small population of people has taken over the world and changed the landscape forever. Hip Hop’s energy and sense of urgency is undeniable and has changed how many seemingly disparate groups of people (mainly youth) express themselves. Don’t believe me, do a google search on International/Global Hip Hop and see what you get.

Refocusing on the US experience we can see how a candidate such as Barack Obama, who himself embodies the same sense of urgency & message of change as Hip Hop, would invigorate our country. People are tired, tired of being lied to, trampled on, disenfranchised & stolen from. That is the legacy of the Bush empire. From his father to him, the Bushes have done nothing good for our country and have managed to redirect the countries wealth into the pockets of the super rich elite. Electing McCain would be electing Bush 2.0 (Papa Warbucks being 1.0 & Dubya 1.8). The country needs fixing and people see that in Obama. Mix in the power and history of Hip Hop and we get a new narrative, one in which all voices are front & center. It will take more than 4 years to fix the mess that this country has become, but hopefully the opportunity will be given & he will not be cast into the role of magical negro (<--- more on this later).

Cherry on Top

The fireworks last nite were really beautiful. Unfortunately, it was raining the whole time and I think the rain caused the smoke to be heavier. Instead of it blowing or washing away it simply stayed in the air and blocked most of the show. Hmmmmm.... oh well, it was still nice. My friend Y got us to actually leave the house. I was not really feelin walking around in the rain but it actually turned out alright. S(J) said something really interesting yesterday...

"Fireworks bring all of these people together. There are no differences right now."

Interesting, but the statement was very accurate. I get very weary of America and of being American. +Side Note+ I do not personally identify as American or African American. I am black, I was born black and always will be black. I have never really liked the term African American b/c it makes me feel fragmented. Black also feels like a link for me to the shared experiences of people of the Diaspora. Perhaps i'll post on this later. +/Side Note+

Anywho, everyone regardless of the differences that we usually operate within was there watching the fireworks. For the 20 or so minutes I didn't even think (conciously) of my framework. It was also nice to be there with Y & S(J). Y is a relatively new friend whom I met through S(J) & Koob-i-licious.

S(J) is moving on Monday. She is moving half a world away, literally. She is going back home, to the Land of the Rising Sun. I asked her to get me some Japanese Hip Hop and send it to me. I've been interested to hear international hip hop recently. Hip Hop is my culture and I want to see how my culture is being interpreted around the world. This topic probably deserves another post at a later date. So S(J) and I got to catch up with one another which was a lit of fun. I will miss her so much.

I miss my Squish... smooching her yesterday would've been the cherry on top of my nite.

Portrait of an ENFP

I just took a Jung personality test over at similarminds.com. The result was uncannily accurate:

ENFP - "Journalist". Uncanny sense of the motivations of others. Life is an exciting drama. 8.1% of total population.

Take Free Jung Personality Test
personality tests by similarminds.com

Hmmmm... after doing a quick google search I found out that ENFP's are sometimes called "Inspirers" & "Visionaries". This is getting better and better!

From Wiki:

"ENFPs are initiators of change, keenly perceptive of possibilities. They energize and stimulate others through their contagious enthusiasm. They prefer the start-up phase of a project or relationship, and are tireless in the pursuit of new-found interests. ENFPs are able to anticipate the needs of others and to offer them needed help and appreciation. They bring zest, joy, liveliness, and fun to all aspects of their lives. They are at their best in situations that are fluid and changing, and that allow them to express their creativity and use their charisma. They tend to idealize people, and can be disappointed when reality fails to fulfill their expectations. They are easily frustrated if a project requires a great deal of follow-up or attention to detail."

I definitely feel after reading more in-depth at the personality page that this is exactly like me. I have always been a person who is constantly thinking of new and exciting things that I want to do. I have never really thought that I couldn't do anything that I wanted to do. I teach myself how to do things all the time (from making jewelry to driving a stick shift) because I honestly don't understand the words "can't" or "no". To me those words sound like a challenge.

The downfalls of being an ENFP are that I usually have a hard time following through (to true) but I will often put something down and come back to it months & years later.

You may be asking yourself now "Why did I name this blog that?" Well the number one reason is because I can and the number two reason is b/c I couldn't really think of anything else that I wanted it to be! So welcome to the blog. I will be updating regularly and this blog will contain a lot of different things including rants, musings, music & basically the things I think about daily that catch my attention, intrigue, bother or inspire me.

Now on with the show...