Journals of a Sick Insomniac: Hip-Hop Awards

I run the risk of sounding ancient but what the hell has been on the radio these days? I have one trusty station that is pretty consistent with good music and usually keeps me happy but you got to change it up. However, I take that chance of exposing myself to verbal diarrhea such as “LOL, smiley face”, “you a jerk” and “have a baby by me”. If you’ve had to endure listening to songs like this, your ears have been verbally assaulted. Is there therapy for that? And if I hear one more stripper song… so help me.

Last night I was flipping through the channels in my stage 1 flu induced coma and came across the BET Hip Hop Awards. And for whatever reason (lets blame illness) I couldn’t look away or seem to change the channel at the barrage of performances with half naked dancers -not really dancing- and men clad in more jewelry than any women should feel comfortable wearing. And we wonder how young men start objectifying women at younger and younger ages, but I digress.

All the while I’m trying to figure out why the announcers are yelling at me.

Here are some highlights (well from my perspective):

• Gucci Mane’s PSA where he stated that although he makes party songs, he takes his sobriety seriously…. (there is nothing I can add without sounding completely insensitive… and right)
• The Dream looks like an underdeveloped chipmunk….
• I never thought I’d see Kid n’ Play together again… doing the kid n’ play
• The “you a jerk” kids were wearing skinny jeans… automatic FAIL (see last post)
• I still don’t know what Soldier Boy says in any of his songs… or Gucci Mane for that matter…
• Please don’t wear red, black and green when you’re singing that song. Matter-of-fact just don’t…
• Busta Rhymes got HELLLA big!!! I mean bigger than last year! I’m not saying, but I’m saying…
• Lil Scrappy is still around?
• It’s hard for me not to like Luda :)…
• Um, you don’t hold your mic like that. Yea, like that. You know why; because that happens…(refer to Dorrough's performance)
  
• Snoops hair was looking extra silky…
• When is Black Thought going to get real recognition
• The Cypher was cool (would have been nice to see more of a female presence)- Mos Def, Black Thought, KRS,… I don't care what anyone says, Eminem’s delivery will always annoy me AND he's truly disturbed
  

Mos Def, Black Thought, Eminem (you can stop before you get to Eminem)

So let me be fair. When I was growing up, grown folks would hate on the music we loved, the styles we creatively displayed in our clothing and hair. Perhaps it’s because I can’t feel the same connection to these songs as I did with the music of my adolescence, perhaps it’s because it’s just not for me. I must admit, a part of me does feel bad when I think of all the young people whose nostalgia will be connected to booty songs and incoherent words. Like will they look back 20 years from now and look up to the sky with a reminiscent gaze when they hear Soldier Boy “Tell Em”? Shoot, they just might!

If I really think about it, there are songs I probably shouldn't be so reminiscent about.

I'm just saying though, if someone had tried to make a video for a song like Buddy present day, there is no way they could have, would have kept it this clean.