Clashing of Two Worlds: Hip Hop and Basketball

The other day, as I was riding in my car listening to music, I started thinking about my two favorite topics—basketball and hip hop.  I usually think about one or the other, but rarely does my mind race about both.  Are there any connections between the two?  If so, what are the connections?  My internal conversation caused me to flashback to a hip hop album, The Lost Boyz’ Love Peace & Nappiness.  On that album the group played a clip of Allen Iverson talking about his rookie season in the NBA.  That skit reminded me that Allen Iverson was one of the first guys to usher in the hip hop era into the NBA.  Although that is true, the infusion of the hip hop culture and basketball started before Iverson.

Let me take a moment and point out some of the connections between hip hop and basketball.  Some of the greatest basketball players and hip hop artists were raised in urban environments.  Think about it: Allen Iverson, Lebron James, Carmelo Anthony were all raised in urban environments.  On the hip hop side, T.I., Nas, B.I.G., Jay-Z, and Snoop Dogg were all raised in urban environments.  Hip hop was born out of struggle, defiance and a way for young people to express themselves.  Basketball was not born out of struggle, but to many inner city youth, it symbolizes an opportunity for a better life for their families; in that respect, basketball epitomizes struggle and expression.  Hip hop artists are exploited by record owners and guess what, so are basketball players.  Hip hop is dominated by young 20-something year old African American males and so is basketball.  Ironically, the biggest consumers of both hip hop music and basketball are non-African Americans.  The two are inextricably intertwined.

Sometimes people discuss hip hop or rap as a genre of music.  Those individuals underestimate the impact of the hip hip culture.  It embodies language, fashion, attitude, and music.  In the NBA, although Michael Jordan is not considered a representative of the culture, his decision to wear longer, baggy shorts and to wear an ear ring was a by-product of the defiance of the hip hop culture.  In the college game, in the early 1990’s, Michigan’s Fab Five started a trend of wearing long, baggy shorts with black shoes and socks.  They proclaimed to the world that they loved hip hop.  They also expressed the ugly reality of exploitation of basketball players.  In the mid 1990’s Allen Iverson entered the NBA.  At that time, he represented the perfect storm between hip hop and basketball. He was young, rebellious and talented.  He was born and raised in an urban environment, but was able to overcome significant obstacles on his way to super stardom.  He wore his hair in corn rows, his arms were filled with tattoos (not initially), his shorts were baggy, he infamously wore fitted hats and platinum chains to press conferences.  He said that he wanted to do things his way and he did. 

The NBA profited off of the hip hop culture.  During half time shows, you could often hear hip hop music being played over PA systems, or hear commentators making hip hop references.  David Stern and the other “powers-that-be” used the hip hop culture to market to a more urban demographic.  Many players during that time wore clothes that were comfortable for them and not necessarily business professional or even business casual attire.  Although David Stern benefited from the hip hop culture, he yearned to control it.  Therefore, it was no surprise to me that he passed a set of rules which require players to dress professionally when sitting on the bench. Now, if you look at the NBA players on the sidelines, they usually have on a suit or at the very least, a sports jacket.  That was his way of minimizing hip hop’s impact.

Although David Stern attempted to stamp out or at least minimize the impact of hip hop, it is still alive and well.  Players still wear diamond earrings, and bracelets.  The only difference is that those are now accessories that go with Tom Ford tailored suits.  Lebron James is a huge hip hop fan and he expresses himself before games by listening to the music on his headphones, or blasting the music in the locker room.  Hip hop is also seen in the ownership ranks of the NBA with Jay-Z being a minority owner of the Brooklyn Nets.  Hip hop is displayed at All-Star weekend.  Many hip hop artists perform and/or attend events during one of the NBA’s biggest weekends.  Their appearances help drive even more people to the festivities and consequently contribute to the NBA’s profit margin.  You see, the marriage between hip hop and basketball cannot be eradicated.  The two are forever intertwined.

Instagram: Mrminter2011

 

Peace 

Nas: Life is Good Album Review

Sometimes, an album comes along and really captures my attention.  In the past, albums fitting that description include: “Aquemini,” “Reasonable Doubt,” and “Illmatic” to name a few.  Nas is one of the most talented emcees to ever bless the microphone. That said, he has frustrated me as a music lover because of his lack of consistency, at times.  When you hear Nas at his best, it is easy to understand why many consider him the best emcee ever.  On his latest studio album, entitled “Life is Good,” Nas was focused and produced a high quality album.  This album definitely caught my attention.

Nas has stellar production on this album.  In the past, it seems to me that he was loyal to certain producers, even to a fault.  He used certain producers that were not on par with his lyrical abilitiy.  Here, he utilizes the talent of No I.D. and Salaam Remi, almost exclusively. However, Swizz Beats, now deceased legend Heavy D, and Buck Wild chipped in to give the album that authentic New York feel.  It also has the right amount of guest appearances.  Some emcees release “solo” albums that sound like group projects as a result of long lists of guest appearances.  On this album, Mary J. Blige, Anthony Hamilton, Rick Ross, and the late, great Amy Winehouse are the featured artists. 

Nas was very reflective and nostalgic on this album.  He discussed serious subjects such as his much publicized divorce from Kelis, gun violence, the joys of fatherhood, and various addictions people succumb to.  The lyrics are strong and the tone of the album is reflective of Nas’ current state of mind.  It is a little too early to decide if the album is a classic.  As I continue to listen to the album over the next few weeks, I will make that determination.  I have often loved or loathed an album during the first week, and then a few weeks later, I did a complete 180 with respect to my feelings about the album. Much of my admiration for this album could be that I am happy to hear new material from one of my favorites emcees and that could skew my opinion.  I will revisit this discussion in a few weeks.

At this stage in my album review of “Life is Good,” I do not skip any songs.  For me, that is rare because I become impatient sometimes (that is still a virtue I am working on), and if I do not like the beat, or the hook, I will skip a song.  At this point (after three full listening sessions), I listen to every song.  One of my early favorite songs is World’s an Addiction featuring Anthony Hamilton.  First off, the beat and hook on this song are amazing.   The song is about peoples’ struggles with various types of addiction.  The hook for the song is “The world is an addiction, serving our fix, the world is an addiction, way too much for me.”  The song is a deep dive into humans’ innermost thoughts and struggles.    

Stay is another one of my early favorite songs.  The horns playing in this song give it a classic jazz vibe.  In the first verse of this song, Nas raps about temptation and the women who tempt men.  He raps: “Watch out for desperate lonely women, hurt ya happy home, miserable and alone, kissable, nice to bone, she not the type deserving of a throne . . .”  Wise words indeed.

Reach Out featuring Mary J. Blige is another one of my favorite songs.  Mary J Blige has one of the most powerful voices I have ever heard.  The beat on the song sounds like something right out of the 1990’s “bad boy” era.  This song has a few notable lines including, “Can see myself in presidential campaign dinners, but I’m gassing blunts around a bunch of gang members, when you are too hood to be in them Hollywood circles and you are too rich to be in the hood that birthed you. . . “  That line sounds like a person who is stuck in between two worlds.  I suppose he is describing an inner struggle between the desire to stay true to yourself; but at the same time, growing and having different experiences.  Another one of my favorite lines from the song is, “I like to teach and build, with brothers about how easy it is to reach a mil.  All you need is some skill, then it’s grind time, imagination is better than knowledge, says Einstein. . . “

Cherry Wine featuring Amy Winehouse has grown on me and it could easily be my favorite song on the album.  Amy Winehouse possessed one of the most unique voices ever and her voice on this song is a nice touch.  The premise of the song is a man/woman searching for a perfect companion.  Nas raps, “She likes the herbs, natural medicine, she cooking good, she tell me everything is cool when it ain’t looking good, for real, the world is ill, yo I want a girl so real who's not after material wealth, but get dough still or maybe an educator, a lady with etiquette who can be from out the hood or even work for the President . . .”  The song is really smooth.

If you love good music, this album is an essential to own.

Peace

What a Wild NBA Offseason . . . Summer 2012

When the 2011-12 NBA season ended with the Miami Heat winning the championship, I must say, I was very happy.  The season ended just as I expected it to end, with the Heat at the top of the proverbial NBA mountaintop.  What I did not expect were some of the moves teams would make in the wake of the season.  I’ll break down a few of my favorite moves thus far.

Ray Allen Leaves the Celtics and Heads to Miami!

This move surprised a lot of people.  I cannot say I was surprised that he left the Boston Celtics.  To me, it seemed like the writing was on the wall for Ray “Jesus Shuttlesworth” Allen to leave his beloved Celtics.  First, he battled through a somewhat injury plagued season.  Then, he lost, or the Celtics gave, his starting job to up-and-coming player, Avery Bradley.  Any person who has ever played basketball knows that when you lose your starting position, the team is showing you that your value has somehow been diminished.  To a player that has always been the third man of the “Big Three” that was probably a hard pill to swallow.  To make matters even worse, the Celtics lost a hard fought series to the Miami Heat.  After the season ended, the Celtics management recruited another shooting guard, who has a championship pedigree, just as Ray Allen has.  They signed Jason “the Jet” Terry, but somehow tried to sell the dream to Ray that they would be able to play together.  Honestly, I think that acquisition was the straw that broke the camel’s back.  While in Boston, Ray Allen constantly ran off of picks set by Kevin Garnett.  In Miami, his role will be similar, but he probably will not have to run off nearly as many picks.  With Lebron and Dwayne Wade drawing opposing defenses’ attention, Ray Allen will play the role that Mike Miller played in game five of the NBA Finals.  He will “spot up” and knock down uncontested shots.  Ray Allen will make a major impact on the Heat and I anticipate a repeat championship by the Heat.  If the Heat sign Marcus Camby, the rest of the league can forget about it.

Steve Nash heads to the Los Angeles Lakers!

Steve Nash is one of my favorite point guards, even at his old age.  He is one of only a hand full of players in the history of the NBA to shoot over 50% from the field, over 40% from behind the three point line and over 90% at the free throw line.  He is one of the best shooters and passers the game has ever seen.  As good as he is on the offensive side of the ball, his defense is terrible (think, Charles Barkley’s voice).  Either way, his arrival is certainly a huge upgrade over Ramon Sessions.  I am not certain how he and Kobe will play off of each other.  Kobe Bryant has handled the ball his entire career and I am not so sure he will be able, or willing, to not dominate the ball.  Steve Nash is effective because he has the ball in his hands 90% of the time and probes the defense until he finds an opening.  The way those two players mesh will be key to the Lakers championship run.  If Nash is allowed to handle the ball and set up other players, as he always has done, we could see a huge spike in production from Bynum, and Gasol, thus propelling the Lakers to a higher level.  As great as Kobe Bryant is, I think the Lakers will become a better team if he stops being a volume shooter and spreads the ball to his other all-star caliber teammates.  I think Steve Nash is just the player that can bring it all together for the Lakers.  As they are currently constructed, I still do not see them beating a very hungry OKC Thunder team, but it could be very interesting if they acquire the rights of Dwight “crybaby” Howard.  I anticipate the Lakers making it to the conference finals and losing to OKC.

Deron Williams stays in Brooklyn!

In a somewhat predictable move, Deron Williams decided to re-sign with the Brooklyn Nets.  He is the kind of talent that can catapult a team into championship contention.  However, he cannot do it alone.  To that end, the Nets signed Joe Johnson, formerly of the Atlanta Hawks.  Joe Johnson is a perennial All-Star and an overall good talent, but his acquisition alone is not enough to compete with the Miami Heat.  He will provide steady scoring, as he did in Atlanta.  But, against the Heat, his production would likely be eclipsed, or at the very least, matched by Dwayne Wade, making his signing negligible in terms of getting the Nets to the next level.  I certainly think Brooklyn improved and their core of Williams, Johnson, Gerald Wallace, Brook Lopez, Marshon Brooks and Kris Humphries is not bad.  However, unless they are able to grab Dwight Howard, they will still find themselves at home watching the NBA Finals next year. 

Lamar Odom and Jamal Crawford head to the Los Angeles Clippers!

Lamar Odon had a very disappointing 2011-12 season.  He experienced a lot of off-court turmoil and as a result, his on-court performance was downright horrible.  He was unable to focus after demanding a trade.  A lot of people wrote him off and said that he is “washed up” or incapable of being a successful professional player.  I think he will use the negative words as motivation for his fresh start with the Los Angeles Clippers.  He could provide the type of versatility the Clippers need to advance further in the playoffs.  Jamal Crawford is another major piece the Clippers signed.  He is best known for being a scoring machine off the bench for a number of NBA teams.  Most importantly, he has the size of a traditional shooting guard.  He can score and he is a veteran player.  I can envision an end game lineup of Chris Paul, Jamal Crawford, Caron Butler, Lamar Odom and Blake Griffin.  Assuming Chauncey Billups is healthy, he could certainly be in that lineup at the end of games.  The Clippers made great moves, but they still don’t have enough to come out of the deep Western Conference.

As much as I hate to admit it, the only player that can single handedly change the power structure of the NBA is Dwight Howard.  I am not a fan of his because he is a crybaby, and seems to never be satisfied.  Either way, this offseason has been exciting thus far, and I anticipate more moves being made in the coming weeks and months.

Peace

 

Hip Hop's Live 96

As I was sitting in my living room on quite possibly the hottest day known to man, I decided to listen to classic hip hop music.  It is kind of funny because the only reason I was in the house was because of the heat.  As I vibed to the music, I started thinking about some of the best years in hip hip’s history and what I was doing during that point in time.  In 1996, I was fourteen years old, and about to embark on my first year of high school.  That year was significant in my life for that reason, but to the rest of the world, 1996 was a big deal because of the albums released.  Let’s take a look at some of my favorites from that year, which coincidentally are also some of my all-time favorite albums.

My favorite album from 1996 is "Reasonable Doubt."  That album was not respected as a classic at the time it was released.  "Reasonable Doubt" is Jay-Z’s first and best album.  People often say that the reason an artist’s first album is the best is because he/she had their entire life to craft the perfect rhymes over the perfect beats to form the “perfect” album.  It is funny that Jay-Z recognized the lack of admiration for his first album when he rhymed “they did not really appreciate it until the second one came out.”  It is difficult to choose my favorite song on the album, so I will name three of my favorites.  “Can I Live,” “Cashmere Thoughts,” and “Dead Presidents” are currently my top three songs.  However, that is likely to change, just as it has done so many times over the years.  Because the album is filled with great verses, it is again difficult to choose just one.  Some of my favorites lines from “Cashmere Thoughts” are: “I talk jewels and spit diamonds, all cherry like a hymen, when I’m rhyming with remarkable timing, caviar and silk dreams, my voice is linen spitting venom up in the minds of young women…” and “Words worth a million like I’m rapping them through platinum teeth I got the Grey Poupon, you have been warned cause all beef return well done filet mignon…”

Nas’ “It Was Written” was also released in 1996.  The album is a classic, but Nas received criticism because it was released after “Illmatic.”  Again, Nas had his entire life to craft “Illmatic” and probably just over a year to write the lyrics for his second album.  It is difficult to think of any great debut album that was followed up with an equally great or better second album.  Many of Nas’ critics expected to hear “Illmatic” part two.  His flow was a little different but the lyrics are still phenomenal.  One thing I have noticed about great musicians is they like to write about their lives as they experience it.  Therefore, I imagine Nas’ frame of mind while writing “Illmatic” was much different than what it was when he wrote the lyrics for "It Was Written."  After all, in the fickle music industry, if an artist’s first album is not good, he may not be given a second chance.  My three favorite songs on the album are: “I Gave You Power,” “Black Girl Lost,” and “The Message.”  On “I Gave You Power,” Nas raps about what his life would be like if he was a gun.  The song does not glorify violence at all; in fact, he raps about the negative impact gun violence has on the world.  My favorite line from “I Gave You Power” is: “          I seen some cold nights and bloody days, they grab me and bullets spray, they use me wrong so I sing this song to this day, my body is cold steel for real I was made to kill, that’s why they keep me concealed…” 

Outkast is one of the best, if not the best groups, ever.  Andre 3000 and Big Boi are two of the most talented artists to ever rock the microphone.  The two released “ATLiens” in 1996 during a time when New York based hip hop dominated the scene.  Sometimes I feel bad for Big Boi because Andre 3000 receives much of the acclaim, and rightfully so.  However, if there is one album that Big Boi more than held his own, it has to be "ATLiens."  The production on the album is stellar and it has a southern, cosmic sound to it.  Some of the beats actually sound like they were made by an extra terrestrial species.  My favorite track on the album is "Elevators."  The beat on that song is phenomenal.  Not surprisingly, my favorite verse is from that song as well.  Andre rhymed: “. . . true I got more fans than the average man but not enough loot to last me to the end of the week, so I live by the beat like you live check to check, if you don’t move yo feet then I don’t eat, so we like neck to neck . . .”  That is probably one of my favorites hip hop lines ever.    

In 1996, Ghostface Killah released “Ironman”.  Raekwon and Ghost have always been my favorite Wu-members, so I was excited to see what Ghost had to offer.  When he released that album, I was reminded about the greatness and immense talent present within the Wu-Tan Clan. Let me be clear, this album showcased Ghostface at his best.  The production is stellar, as all Wu-Tang albums were in the early days.  Back in those days, when Ghost and Raekwon were on a track together, you already knew the chemistry would be second to none.  I like so many songs on this album; therefore, I do not have a single favorite track.  I like “Daytona 500,” “Winter Warz” and “All That I Got is You.”  I do not have a favorite verse from the album, but I like Ghost’s verse on Winter Warz:  “Germs start to spread through your crew, drew like an epic you asked for it, shot up the jams like syringes, my technique alone blows doors straight off the hinges . . .”  I like Ghost because he has a different style and his flow and lyrical content is unique.  

Because 1996 was such a great year for hip hop, check out the albums that just missed my top 4.

Mobb Deep's Hell on Earth

Redman's Muddy Waters

Peace