tagged w/ Nas
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After topping the charts with his latest album, Nas took teamed up with Move On and Color of Change to deliver a box of petitions to Fox News.
“We’re here to make a stand,” Nas told a small crowd as he delivered the more than 600,000 flyers to the network.
Nas called out Fox News labeling Michelle Obama Barack’s “baby mama” and O’Reilly’s “lynching party” references as “racist.”
Watch the video here....
http://www.hiphopdx.com/index/news/id.7377After topping the charts with his latest album, Nas took teamed up with Move On and... more
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Nas delivered a petition of 620,127 to Fox News headquarters, to protest their racist depiction of blacks. Nas delivered a petition of 620,127 to Fox News headquarters, to protest their racist... more
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With the recent release of his album "Untitled", rapper Nas is more of an activist than ever. I has recently joined the ColorOfChange and MoveOn organizations to peititon against media giant Fox News. Nas denounces the racist propaganda aired on the news channel by citing examples such as Bill O'Reilly's attack on Michelle Obama using the phrase "lynching party", the infamous "terrorist fist jab", Michelle Obama as the Barack's "baby mama". He said: "Fox poisons this country every time they air racist propaganda and try to call it news. This should outrage every American that Fox uses hateful language to talk about the person that may be the first black president."
With over 600,000 signatures, ColorOfChange demands that network president Roger Ailes "find a solution to address racial stereotyping and hate-mongering before it hits the airwaves." Fox rejected the petitions, but Brave New Films says that Comedy Central's The Colbert Report will accept them instead.
If you haven't seen Nas' "Sly Fox" video, check it out here on Current by typing "Nas Takes On Sly Fox" in the search box.With the recent release of his album "Untitled", rapper Nas is more of an... more
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Nas is turning his words into action as he’ll join ColorOfChange.org and MoveOn.org in delivering a 600,000-signature petition to the channel’s Manhattan studios tomorrow afternoon. The petition demands that Fox “end its pattern of racist attacks against Black Americans including presidential candidate Barack Obama and his wife Michelle.”Nas is turning his words into action as he’ll join ColorOfChange.org and... more
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3 years ago
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If you’re like me, you spend your weekends in a hammock listening to conscious rap while reading Scientific American.
So when rapper Nas released his new album, "Untitled," after much controversy surrounding its previous title, "Nigger," I naturally did what anyone else would do: I tallied the number of N-words Nas has dropped in each of his albums, and charted the results for your viewing pleasure.
If you’re like me, you spend your weekends in a hammock listening to conscious... more
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When Nas said he didn't name his album "Nigger" because there might be problems getting it into stores, it was no surprise. But when he said pressure from black leaders played a role, it seemed out of character.
The Queens-reared rapper has never been one to kowtow. Just last month, he referred to the Rev. Jesse Jackson as "the biggest player hater" and declared Jackson's time as a voice for black America over.
But in a recent CNN interview, Nasir Jones explained he didn't change the album's name to please the Rev. Al Sharpton and other black leaders. Rather, they were stealing his thunder.
"I don't think I liked the attention I was getting from some of the elders in my community," he said. "I saw it kind of leaning toward being about them ... only about them. I kind of wanted to just shake that off of me."
His remedy? To drop the title altogether -- literally. The album, out Wednesday, has no name. But don't think Nas is cowering from controversy -- the cover features the rapper shirtless with his iconic, gothic "N" digitally whipped into his back.
With a host of racial issues -- the Jena Six, Don Imus, nooses -- fresh on America's mind, naming an album "Nigger" seems ill-advised. Nas, however, said his goal wasn't to upset; it was to upend a society that focuses more on pejoratives than the racial plights that spawn them.
"There's still so much wrong in the whole world with people -- poor people, people of color -- I just felt like a nice watch couldn't take that away, make me forget about that. A nice day on a yacht with rich friends couldn't make me forget about reality, what's going on," he said. "That's why I named the album that -- not just that the word is horrible, but the history behind the word, and how it relates to me, how it's affected me, offended me."
Harvard law professor Randall Kennedy delves into the frustrating duality of the slur in his 2003 bestseller, "Nigger: The Strange Career of a Troublesome Word." Since colonist John Rolfe first coined "negar," referring in 1619 to a shipment of Africans to Virginia, the epithet has lived a largely opprobrious life, with one exception, Kennedy writes.
"Currently, some people insist upon distinguishing nigger -- which they see as exclusively an insult -- from nigga, which they view as a term capable of signaling friendly salutation," Kennedy writes.
Kennedy, who is black, concludes his book expressing satisfaction that the word's use causes anxiety. Politicians should avoid uttering it at all costs, he writes, and uses by nonblacks is most often a no-no.
But never underestimate the word's complexities, says Kennedy: "For bad and for good, nigger is thus destined to remain with us for many years to come -- a reminder of the ironies and the dilemmas, the tragedies and glories, of the American experience."
Kennedy declined to comment for this story, and Sharpton's press office did not respond to an e-mail and voice message requesting an interview.
Because Nas rescinded the title doesn't mean the multiplatinum rapper isn't prepared to engage in debate on the word's merit in today's lexicon.
"It's all about the intent and what you mean and how it's coming off and the reason why you're saying it. You know, if it's ill intent, if you're angry, being ignorant, being meanspirited, saying that word -- it means the worst," he explained. "If you're just a couple of black guys on the street corner, doesn't mean it's a great thing, but it's not that they're trying to harm each other when they say it."
As for a wholesale ban on the word -- something Jackson and Sharpton have suggested -- Nas scoffed.
"For some people, you should never be able to use it," he said. "For others, it's way too late. It's too late to try to stop using it. It's something that's just part of the language now."When Nas said he didn't name his album "Nigger" because there might be... more
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The lead single appears to be Nas's newest attempt at anthem rap, and the results are somewhere between the exceptional "Made You Look" and the contrived "Hate Me Now" of the past.
Nas's ninth studio album is chained to the same expectations as the previous eight were - match perhaps the best album in hip hop history or piss everyone off. And it's unfortunate, because the Queensbridge griot still has so much to say, even if he doesn't say it with quite as much impact, grit or focus as he did back in 1994.
The original album title was supposed to be N-gger - a controversial indicator of the pointed socio-political commentary contained herein. Because of intense label pressure, the release is now self-titled.
"The people will always know what the real title of this album is, and what to call it," the rapper said in a statement.
With this album, he gets closer than ever to delivering an artistic statement as cohesive and eloquent as his debut. And he does something else: He brings politics back to rap - a feat rarely attempted by a mainstream artist since the early '90s.
In that time, aside from the occasional one-off track, music and message have not mixed much. Until now. With this, Nas puts his foot down, reclaiming hip-hop's legacy as a political force. The lead single appears to be Nas's newest attempt at anthem rap, and the results... more
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Nas’ potential is so immense that it puts him in the uncomfortable position of living up to a level of artistic greatness that presumably doesn’t exist. Case in point, Illmatic was an unintentional classic. It came at a time when Hip Hop wasn’t begging for a savior. Nas just became its leader. There was no pressing cultural issue that demanded an icon. Nas just rolled his young sleeves up and menaced the microphone. There wasn’t enough media attention surrounding Nas to question - or demand change to - a controversial line like “When I was twelve I went to hell for snuffing Jesus” off of his guest spot on “Live at the Bar-B-Que” as there is today. There was no pressure to make a classic. And that’s how classics are made.
Since that template has been set, everyone has expected Nasir Jones to eclipse that timeless piece of work. The fact of the matter is that it will be impossible to nail it like Illmatic did. It was equal parts timing and brilliance. But Nas has been trapped under that microscope of critics and fans alike and often succumbed a bit to the pressure. It’s not Nas’ fault. It never appeared that he made Illmatic with the idea of making millions. It just happened that way.
Every piece of work since has been compared to his debut and it appeared that even Nas was uncomfortable with what he saw in the mirror. Realizing he has no peers in today’s generation of Hip Hop artists, Nas has stood alone in this industry. And it does indeed get lonely at the top. Because of that, he has created work that is more reflective of those who are artistically beneath him rather than put the blinders on and do what he does best. Each of his 7 works following Illmatic have embraced this to some capacity. Some have been critically acclaimed (Stillmatic) while others have been critically panned but commercially successful (Nastradamus). Regardless, it seemed that Nas was too conscious of what people thought rather than making what he thought was great.
Read the rest of the review here.....
http://www.hiphopdx.com/index/reviews/id.976
Nas’ potential is so immense that it puts him in the uncomfortable position of... more
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As we all know, Nas has always been vocal about current events. In his upcoming album "Untitled", Nas takes on the mainstream media, especially Fox News...
Check out the video...
Notice at the end that one kid suggests (holding a camcorder) to create our own media that reflects our views instead of watching the nonsense on cable news. Maybe a shout out to Current TV?
"Watch What You're Watching...Media...Misleadin' ya..."
"WE ARE THE MEDIA!"
As we all know, Nas has always been vocal about current events. In his upcoming album... more
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King Magazine recently released some lost excerpts of their interview with Nas. While most of it had to do with Nas discussing his early years in Hip Hop, one question and accusation proved to be a bit eyebrow raising.
"I ran into Prodigy last week and asked him, 'What should I ask Nas?' He said, 'Ask him, ‘What happened backstage at the Central Park show in 2004,’” Thomas Golianopoulos inquired.
“Man, that was some classic Mobb Deep shit. They was rumbling,” Nas replied regarding a fight that took place backstage between Mobb Deep and others. But Prodigy thinks that those involved were Nas’ people.
“He thinks you set him up,” Golianopoulos responded.
Read what else Nas says here...
http://www.hiphopdx.com/index/news/id.7299King Magazine recently released some lost excerpts of their interview with Nas. While... more
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Bold words indeed..yet I have but one question...who the hell is Nas? I must google and find out why anything he says should be listened to...
On a related note, isnt Jesse Jackson known for saying batshit crazy things every once and a while, why is this time so media intensive? Bold words indeed..yet I have but one question...who the hell is Nas? I must google... more
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For some, the gloves worn by Curtis Jackson as he pummels artist after actress after rapper with his lyrical attacks may read marketing and promotion. Flanked in his corner by the most dynamic training duo in history (Dr. Dre and Eminem) 50 Cent has ensured his constant presence on the gossip sites and Hip Hop webzines with his verbal attacks on the innocent, the not-so-innocent and those looking for a free PR campaign.
Right or wrong, 50 Cent has encouraged some of the most talked about tirades in the last five years, giving former label mates a harsh dose of reality, (Young Buck) and the fuel to rage their own campaign against the notorious one (The Game), but as we all know, all is not fair in love and war and there have been casualties that have never really gotten over the knocks they have taken and some, even though they tug at the ropes, probably never will.
This piece is here to break it down - the tried, the tested, the totally annihilated and the ones who failed to drop to the floor when the Queens fighter came into the ring.
ROUND ONE: Ja Rule
Read all about his beefs here....
http://www.hiphopdx.com/index/columns-editorials/id.1162For some, the gloves worn by Curtis Jackson as he pummels artist after actress after... more
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Nas in the news again? This time, the Queens rapper is calling out multiple media entities and figures in his recently leaked single, "Sly Fox."Nas in the news again? This time, the Queens rapper is calling out multiple media... more
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When was the last official Nas mixtape we’ve heard in the past year or two? I can’t recall. That mere fact, makes us expect this less. The official jumpoff tape before the album drops next month comes firing like the cops Nas speaks of on the third track ("Cops Keep Firing"). From top to bottom, there is not one track to skip over, not even the skits. "Black President" and "Association" just speak that real ish. On "N.I.G.G.E.R. (The Slave and The Master)" and "Ghetto" featuring Joell Ortiz [click to read], he drops that knowledge while Joell Ortiz goes in brutally. Round that up with one of the best singles ("Hero") Nas has put out since “If I Ruled The World”, an unreleased track ("Surviving the Times"), a couple remixes and a timeline mix of every major song in his catalogue and this holds to be one of the best mixtapes of the year. The funny thing is they might have only used only three tracks from the actual album, so all this material is still new to your avid Nas fan who should be left drooling after one spin of this Green Lantern tape.
Read about this mixtape and all the hottest new mixtapes here....
http://www.hiphopdx.com/index/features/id.1158
When was the last official Nas mixtape we’ve heard in the past year or two? I... more
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After a lot of speculation over who Nas would work with on his Nigger-turned-Untitled album, the final tracklisting was released late this week. Whereas Nas mentioned seeking MF DOOM for production that seems to be the only rumored collaboration that was not actualized.
Seven year affiliate Salaam Remi only got one placement in "You Can't Stop Us Now" featuring members of The Stylistics and The Last Poets. The is the second time, after Common's Be [click to read] the latter rap/poetry pioneers appear on a mainstream Hip Hop release. It is Polow Da Don who earned the rights to the first single in "Hero" featuring Timbaland protege Keri Hilson.
Several of the same personnel used on Hip-Hop Is Dead [click to read] return for Untitled. Longtime Anthony Hamilton producer Mark Batson provides "Testify" while Ne-Yo and Beyonce hitmaker Stargate delivers "America." New name producer J. Myers chimes in on "Ya'll My Niggas" and assists Dustin Moore on "Breathe."
Read the rest here....
http://www.hiphopdx.com/index/news/id.7216
After a lot of speculation over who Nas would work with on his Nigger-turned-Untitled... more
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Phoenix Suns center, Shaquille O’Neal spit a freestyle in a New York nightclub that was aimed at former teammate Kobe Bryant.
Taped alongside Corey Gunz, Shaq rhymes lines like “You know how I be. Last week Kobe couldn’t do without me.” and a crowd joining chant of “Kobe, tell me how my ass tastes.” That can be seen in a video courtesy of TMZ.com.
Watch the video here & see what nas had to say....
http://www.hiphopdx.com/index/news/id.7176
Phoenix Suns center, Shaquille O’Neal spit a freestyle in a New York nightclub... more
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Nas has finally announced a release date for his long-awaited LP. The release of the controversial album - formally known as Nigger - will be known now as Untitled and hitting stores July 15.
As followed extensively by HipHopDX, Nas' album was initially given the title Nigga, before Nas decided to enrage Civil Rights leaders and spark numerous heated debates by changing the title to the more controversial Nigger. As the controversy came to a fever pitch, Def Jam executives came to Nas' aid and supported the project, citing his right to freedom of speech, creativity, and the opportunity to open much-needed dialog about the word. Civil rights leader Reverend Al Sharpton as well as other critics deemed the album's title "dangerous" and "disrespectful".
Read the rest here....
http://www.hiphopdx.com/index/news/id.7092
Nas has finally announced a release date for his long-awaited LP. The release of the... more
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Just days after Obama's nomination, Nas released "Black President." He uses that Tupac sample so poetically.
Just days after Obama's nomination, Nas released "Black President." He... more
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A week after announcing he will rename his controversial Nigger album to simply Nas, word has spread that Nas is scheduled to team up with DJ Green Lantern to drop a mixtape titled The Nigger Tape. "I guess it shows you the power of Wal-Mart and Target," Green Lantern told Rhapsody's Play blog. "If that was the case, it's definitely scary because it kind of fucks with your artistic vision".
Read more here ...
http://www.hiphopdx.com/index/news/id.7013A week after announcing he will rename his controversial Nigger album to simply Nas,... more
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Nas attempts to take the sting out of the N word by referencing it more than once on his new album.Nas attempts to take the sting out of the N word by referencing it more than once on... more
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