BET Does It Again, Again

So, if you're a loyal Trufe Seeker, you'll recall my post reviewing last year's BET Awards, where I started by saying I'm not a huge fan of BET programming due to Viacom's ownership of the station, its overabundance of reality TV shows (like, LisaRaye has one? I love her, but she ain't done shit since The Player's Club) and its exploitative shows (see Tiny and Toya). I ain't gone stunt though, I fux with College Hill, and The Game, but besides those two shows, that remains the same. But, as usual, I tuned in to the annual BET Awards as it celebrated its 10th anniversary, and for the second year in a row, I was pleased.

One thing I can appreciate about BET is the fact that they remain loyal to Black artists, even when others don't. Remember how SNL threw Kanye under the bus due to the Taylor Swift shit at the VMAs last year? Well, BET followed that up by letting Kanye open the show with his current single, "Power". The show was hosted by Queen Latifah, fresh off her performance in Just Wright (which also got reviewed earlier this month), who didn't win me over with her attempts at being funny through her costume changes paying homage to the roles she's played in past films (sorry it ain't no link for that, Idk how to find all them shits), but at least that was preceded by her somewhat humorous intro and lyrically surprising verse to "Forever" by Drake nem.

I know this show is called the BET Awards, but I think most of the slander this award show faces is based on the fact that the actual awards given out are not even the focal point of the show. A BET Award is not as prestigious as a Grammy, or even an MTV Award for that matter, and that fact is exemplified when artists like Nicki Minaj win awards just for showing up. Let's keep it 100, why is a BET Award for Best Female Hip-Hop Artist even in existence at this point in mainstream rap music? Missy Elliot has won it FIVE times, last year there were only three nominees (Trina, Lil Mama, and the winner M.I.A.), and in 2007, it wasn't even a category. This year, Nicki won it in what has to be assumed as a landslide against current rival Lil Kim, Trina, Rasheeda, and Ester Dean. Um... what? Trina's the only nominee who dropped an album this year (the rarely-mentioned, horribly promoted Amazin' in May), but her last single from that album dropped in January. Ester Dean's only single, "Drop it Low" was part of a soundtrack and not even her own project, Lil Kim has been dancin' with the stars more than she's been in a studio, and Rasheeda's biggest song ("Got That Good (Bubble Gum)") was released in TWO-THOUSAND-SIX. Not to mention, its biggest recognition probably came in 2009's Paul Blart: Mall Cop as a ringtone.

I think besides the fact that it showcases Black entertainers in the spotlight, what makes the BET Awards enjoyable is the performances, and most of them did not disappoint. T.I. did his thing with his performance of "Yeah Ya Know (Takers)"; B.o.B. did a rendition of "Airplanes" with Keyshia Cole replacing Hayley Williams on the hook (which was quite enjoyable, if I do say so myself); which transitioned into Eminem performing "Not Afraid", which I'm sure will be a bigger, better performance at the MTV Awards or the VMAs later this year; Diddy-Dirty Money performed as only a Diddy-led group can; Monica brought out Deniece Williams to spice up an average performance of Monica's single "Everything to Me", which samples Williams' "Silly"; and Drake gave the same average performance he always gives, featuring hand movements that looked like he was "fingering the air", as Michelle Rashad so eloquently put it.

El DeBarge gave two random, yet amazing performances; J. Cole got cut off during his verse to Jay-Z's "A Star is Born" for some reason; Alicia Keys was all over the place, pregnant and all; Tyrese performed a tribute to the late Teddy Pendergrass and Trey Songz (in addition to his Best Male R&B Award) performed a tribute to Prince, and I'm sure both were much to the delight of skeezas all over the country; and of course BET had it's usual gospel performance, complete with Kirk Franklin, Marvin Sapp, Fred Hammond, Karen Clark Sheard, Kim Burrell, and Yolanda Adams. But of course, the best performance of the night, if you haven't heard, obviously goes to Chris Brown and his tribute to Michael Jackson. Chris's dancing was nearly identical to Mike's, and he even broke into tears while trying to sing "Man in the Mirror", which I personally feel was half heartfelt, half a smart move on the behalf of Chris's image consultant, but hey, I just think like that.

The night was capped with DJ Khaled's remix of "All I Do Is Win", which, like most rap remixes, features nearly every active mainstream rapper you can think of. Busta Rhymes was RIDICULOUS on that song, but for some reason, today's "fans" listen to and support bad lyrics, yet label actual talent bad if a rapper, such as Busta is rappin' too fast for their Lil B-adjusted ears to keep up with. Go figure. Prince was also honored as the year's Lifetime Achievement Award recipient, yet, unlike most recipients, did not perform himself. Instead, he let newcomer Janelle Monae, Alicia Keys, some other lady, and R&B legend Patti LaBelle (who kicked off her shoes while sangin', now THAT'S soul, youngstas) hold him down.

The BET Awards was not without its usual mishaps, though. Was it just me, or did not all the awards actually be presented on screen? The Terence J and Rocsi kiss did not provide as much shock value as I think BET anticipated; I for one thought they had been bonin' for a minute anyway. Anthony Anderson provided some of the only non-performance entertainment with his consistent references to El DeBarge representing for the "light-skinned, wavy bruthas" with the short time he had, and Mike Epps provided a few chuckles with his 90s-oriented outfit the first time he presented. Jay-Z, Beyonce, and Rihanna were nowhere to be found, and one has to assume it's because of BET's decision to let Chris perform. I hope they realized how much no one really missed their presence. Seriously, y'all, people make mistakes. Get over it. All in all, I think it was a good night for BET, and the Black entertainers it chooses to honor every year. I will, however, go back to keeping my dial away from channel 61, unless The Game is on. Here are some of the winners:

Best Female R&B: Alicia Keys

Best Male R&B: Trey Songz

Best Gospel Artist: Marvin Sapp

Best Group: Young Money

Best New Artist: Nicki Minaj

Best Collaboration: Jay-Z and Alicia Keys for "Empire State of Mind"

Video of the Year: Beyonce and Lady Gaga for "Video Phone"

Viewer's Choice: Rihanna and Young Jeezy - "Hard"

Actor of the Year: Mo'Nique

Lifetime Achievement: Prince

Humanitarian of the Year: John Legend

~Trufe

Full Recovery?

Aight, so I don't think it's a secret I'm a HUGE Eminem fan. I wouldn't really say a die-hard fan, cuz some folk is crazy over these celebrities they worship and I don't wanna be in that category, but it's safe to say that the same way most men in urban areas have faith in Lil Wayne being the best and their rapper alive, I have that same faith, if not more, in Eminem.

Ironically, though, with his 6th major LP, Recovery getting leaked roughly a week ago, I read more than a few reviews of Eminem's latest album, and with the tracks I had heard (mostly just "Not Afraid" and "No Love"), I somehow led myself to believe I would dislike this album. All of that went out the window as soon as I heard the first track.

So, gettin' straight to the point, if you just started really listening to rap (which I truly believe most of these listeners have), you probably missed the last decade, where Slim Shady sold more records than any music artist in the world, despite a five-year gap between his last two albums of the decade (2004's Encore and last year's Relapse). You prolly also missed his infamous struggle with drugs which explains the hiatus. I say that to say this, at the second track of the album, "Talkin' to Myself", Em says, "I'm back". From the standpoint of a dedicated fan, I'm not sure I believe that.

The entire album feels forced. Sure, he's regained his passion for music, and sounds as if he actually listened to this album before releasing it (unlike Encore, and to a lesser extent, Relapse), but one thing that struck me as odd is that Em is rapping as if he has something to prove. This is the main difference between this album, and his first three, The Slim Shady LP, The Marshall Mathers LP, and The Eminem Show, all of which saw huge commercial and critical success. He didn't have to try on those albums; he just did him, and it worked to perfection. It seems as if he's been listening to the critics as of late, with lines such as, "them last two albums didn't count/ Encore I was on drugs, Relapse I was flushin' 'em out" ("Talkin' to Myself"), and went into the studio this time around with a chip on his shoulder. Eminem is probably the most controversial rapper since 2Pac. But in the past when faced with controversy and facing critics, he simply went into the studio and lyrically and blatantly made a mockery of every obstacle in his way, much to the delight of consumers. Recovery submits to the demands of people like Nick Cannon who called Relapse "a mediocre (at best) Eminem record that sounds like it was written in 2001" and shows a somewhat desperate Em experiment with a pop-oriented sound, much more commercial-sounding than his previous albums.

The production of the album is excellent in my opinion, though, when compared to most of today's rap albums. Em ventures away from strictly using beats from Dr. Dre and himself, and employs producers such as Boi-1da, Jim Jonsin, and Just Blaze (remember that guy? From back when Roc-a-Fella was hot?) who equally provide sick beats that would excite most rappers. The bad thing to that, though, is that the such different sounds can make an album sound inconsistent without proper transitions, which Recovery lacks. I personally don't think a song like "W.T.P." (short for White Trash Party), a rare party song from Em should be followed by a track such as "Going Through Changes", probably the most personal song on the album. But hey, that's just me.

Unlike most mainstream rappers, Eminem has never been one to rely on guest appearances to carry an album, especially not from artists such as P!nk, Lil Wayne (whom he says he came close to dissing out of pure jealousy on "Talkin' to Myself"), or Rihanna. Aaaand yet, those are three of the four guests featured on the album; the fourth being some singer named Kobe (not the knock-off Michael Jordan, thankfully). That backs my claim that Em appears to actually be trying to impress opponents with this album, as opposed to just being himself and being the best as he did in the past.

When it comes down the actual lyrics, Em's tries out the new norm in today's rap game, and tries to implement punchlines into his style. He doesn't use the run-of-the-mill, simile-based punchlines, though (which everyone refers to as metaphors for some reason, go figure), or even what I deem the Young Money punchlines (a simile-based punchline missing the word "like" or any such phrase; i.e. "it's goin' down; basement" as opposed to "it's goin' down [like a] basement"), but rather emphasizes the cleverness of comparing two unlike things with lines such as "need I remind you/ that I don't need the fuckin' Swine Flu/ to be a sick pig?" ("Won't Back Down" feat. P!nk) Some critics have been complaining that Em gets too "singy-songy" on most of his hooks. I agree with that, but compared to most other rap hooks, which usually just repeat a particular catchy phrase till it's stuck in your head for 82 weeks (see "Pretty Boy Swag"), I'll gladly take the singy-song hooks that keep me interested, while carrying the song as opposed to filling the space between verses.

All in all, I think Eminem set out to make an album that disproves naysayers, and regains the trust and happiness of his long-time supporters, as well as gain some of rap's newer ears who may have clung to rappers such as Wayne and Drake in Em's absence. I think this album definitely does that, and will definitely be one of the more lucrative albums released this year. Does that make it a GOOD album? Arguable. Is it Eminem's best album (as I've heard some fans prematurely claim)? Not at all. But it's more tolerable than Encore as well as Relapse, and that shows something at least. I'm not sure what that something is, but Recovery shows it.

In closing, Eminem at his worst is probably still sicker than your favorite rapper. While I don't feel he's at his best on this album, he's at the best Em fans have seen him since the Show, and better than most fans have probably ever seen him. Overall rating: 4 out of 5.

~Trufe

What Are We Thanking You For Again...?

Ok, I confess. It's obvious from the title that this post is Tha Trufe's review of Drake's debut album, Thank Me Later, but I only titled this post the way I did to attract readers. And I say that because I feel the title of this post implies that I disliked Drake's debut album, which is not completely the case. So with that outta the way, lemme start with the actual review.

So, gettin' straight to the point, I'm not a HUGE Drake fan, but that's primarily due to me being a HUGE opponent of Lil Wayne. Drake's music is actually enjoyable to a certain extent. With Thank Me Later, Drake pushes that certain extent to the limit, and sadly, I feel he crossed it.

In Layman's terms, most of the material on Thank Me Later sounds nearly identical to most of the material on his last, and most famous mixtape, So Far Gone. Hell, the first three tracks, "Fireworks", "Karaoke", and "The Resistance" all sound as if most listeners wouldn't know the difference between them if they were a capella.

I'm sure everyone knows by now, that compared to his life as Jimmy from Degrassi, Aubrey Graham is having a hard time adjusting to life in the fast lane as Drake. Add to that, his fame has been keeping him from contacting his loved ones as much as he'd like, and when he's not reminiscing over his many ex-girlfriends, he's partying with the niggas he would die for; i.e. his Young Money labelmates and affiliates. How do we all know that, you ask? Maybe because EVERY song he makes talks about one of these topics. I, for one, did expect his debut album to go places his mixtapes didn't, but I guess Drake went for the "if it ain't broke, don't fix it" formula. I'm not sure how many different ways you can talk about the same shit, but it appears as if Drake is focused on showing us. After all, he IS labelmates with Wayne; and he's the master of finding different ways to talk about the same nothing.

The album is not all bad, though. It's rare that the first single of an album is a track that doesn't get skipped over when listening to the entire album, but "Over" is one of the best songs on the album. Take of that what you will. I find it crazy how much the end of the second verse of "Over" sounds so similar to the end of the second verse of the very next track, "Show Me a Good Time" ("It's about time you admit it, who you kiddin'?/ Man nobody's ever done it how I did it, ahh!" in comparison to, "Call me overrated or created or too jaded/ because anyway you put it, bitch I made it, YEUUH!"), but I digress.

The album picks up a head of steam at "Up All Night" with Nicki Minaj, a track that while very anticipated (a punch-line filled, bass-heavy track with a feature from a Young Money artist) still sounds nice enough to draw the attention of rap fans and trap fans alike. "Fancy" with Swizz Beatz and T.I. is the one unpredicted track on the album, due to the features and the tempo. The topic of the song (fly, independent women) has been done by Drake time and time again, however, and The-Dream's take on the topic, which strangely has the same exact title, came out a year before.

Speaking of The-Dream, he's featured on the next track, "Shut it Down", which feels pretty much like "Fancy" (Drake's version) set to a slower, sexier tempo, very reminiscent of "Houstatlantavegas". I also feels as if it should've ended at the 5:09 mark, where it teases us as if it will end before starting back up, signifying an in-track change in scenery, from the club to the crib. "Unforgettable" with Jeezy feels like a track just added to fill out the album, and the "At Your Best (You Are Love" by Aaliyah sample just bedazzles me.

The only difference between "Light Up" and "Miss Me" is that one features Jay-Z (who KILLED his verse), and one features Wayne respectively, and that they obviously have a different beat and hook. "Cece's Interlude" is yet another track dedicated to an ex (how many women has this dude dated?!), with whom Drake wishes things ended better, and I don't understand why "Find Your Love" was selected as the second single over tracks like "Fancy" and "Shut it Down", which sound much better, and more radio-oriented. For a description on the last track, "Thank Me Now", see any of the above.

In closing, this is not a collection of BAD music. Just music I'm personally tired of hearing from the same artist. I mean, the worst part about having a "buzz so big [you] can prolly sell a blank disc" is that when you put the same sounding music on your album as you did on your mixtape, EVERYONE effected by that buzz will notice. I, for one, don't think this album is indicative of what to expect over Drake's career, though. I get the feeling that right now, Drake is just tying up loose ends as far as his music is concerned; it really doesn't feel like he's making music for HIM. But instead, for his exes, his family, and the mainstream audience. I'll give him more time before I pass judgement on him as an artist, but I really don't feel we are getting all we can out of this talented young man. The sky is the limit, and I think it will only get better from here. Overall rating: 3.5 out of 5.

~Trufe

Facebook V. Twitter

Aight, so, if you're a loyal Trufe Seeker, you might recall a post from last November entitled "Who's Real? Who's Fake?", which mainly focused on how nowadays, it seems that people rely on social-networking sites such as Facebook or Twitter to portray an image of someone not truly reflective of the person they really are. In that post, I mentioned, and I quote, "I really think that most people are only on Facebook becuz the current social networking site trend is 'MySpace is lame, Facebook is where it's at', or something along those lines." Well, folks, inevitably, the time is upon us that the current social networking site trend is "Facebook is lame, Twitter is where it's at." And I knew it would happen.
Lemme get straight to the point, I feel that Twitter is "the dumbest shit ever created", going back to the aforementioned post. I once read a post on Twitter that was somewhere along the lines of "most of the people dissin' Twitter are the people who have no followers", and I won't bullshit cha, I am amongst that bunch. But, I for one am proud of my 41 followers, gat dammit. So tell me, Mr. or Mrs. anyonymous know-it-all-Tweeter, how does one gain a lotta followers? Cuz from what I see, you either have to be a celebrity, have a pic or pics showing more skin than should be allowed on the internet, or have no problem with being "publically" ignorant every 5 minutes. Save for the first option, I'll pass on that.
But, my lack of followers and my cluelessness on how to gain followers is NOT the reason I dislike Twitter. I dislike it because after months of giving it a chance, I still fail to see its purpose. I mean, who really needs to know (or cares) what someone is doing by the minute? Why are people interested in having a play-by-play of someone else's life? And the trending topics are the worst. Just last week, I just so happened to be checking my Twitter and the #1 TT at the time was #ThingsBlackPeopleDo. Like, for real? A trending topic like that has the potential to get ignorant faster than black men run away from fatherhood. <--- See that shit? THAT'S the type of ignorance that reigns supreme on Twitter. But no worries, I could get away with displaying my ignorance as long as I put #ThingsBlackPeopleDo before or after a prejudiced quip like that.
In my opinion, the title of this post is inaccurate; I fail to understand how people can truly compare Facebook to Twitter. It's really an apple and oranges debate, if you think about it (but I get the strange feeling most Tweeters don't think a lot, if at all). I mean, Facebook is a website which, to my knowledge, exists for the purpose of keeping connections intact, as well as reuniting with people from your past, such as people you went to high school with, former co-workers, etc. And Twitter is a website which... well, I still haven't figured out its purpose. So, if you're one of those people who don't keep it real via your Facebook, and merely have one because it was the trend at the time, or you just use it as a source of entertainment, I can understand why you choose to run to Twitter for the obvious reasons. But, if you actually use Facebook for what it was made for; to keep in touch with people when text messages and phone calls get old, you're probably in the same boat as me in this debate.
So, that's that, I guess. I for one, log into my Facebook every single day. With text messaging virtually making phone conversations obsolete, and me not having 1,076 phone numbers in my phone as I have that same amount of friends on Facebook, I still use Facebook as a tool of communication as opposed to entertainment. Even when I feel the need to be entertained through the computer screen, I don't rely on the ignorance that runs amuck on Twitter to be that entertainment. That's what YouTube as well as game websites are for. I also prefer being labeled a "friend" as opposed to a "follower", but with most people on Twitter merely using it due to following a trend anyway, I'm sure the latter title presents no problem with them.
To close, I still think people need to find the courage to be themselves and make their own choices, on and off the internet. Because as long as people lack that courage, I'm pretty sure Twitter, too will be old news in maybe a year and a half, tops. And I leave you with the same question I asked at the end of the "Who's Real? Who's Fake?" post: when will we be comfortable enough with ourselves to BE ourselves? #ThatIsAll.
Follow me, @MrOneTake, you mindless human!!
~Trufe

Hood Reviews: Just Wright

I know my typing skills contradict the title of Hood Reviews, but fuck y'all. Just 'cause you from the hood don't mean you gotta be ig'nant and can't be articulate. With that said...

!!! SPOILER ALERT !!! I TELL WHAT HAPPENS IN THE MOVIE !!! IF YOU AIN'T SEEN, BUT PLAN ON SEEING IT IT, WHY DID YOU READ ANYTHING AFTER "SPOILER ALERT"? !!!

Aight, so, I know it's been a long time, but hey, who needs details? I'm lazy.
Anyhoo, I got the chance to check out the new Common and Queen Latifah movie, Just Wright like, 10 minutes ago, and to keep it short and simple, it "was like bad sex with great foreplay". Shouts to Phoenix Andre Clouden for the quote.
Yeah, I post links to my Facebook friends, so what? Back to the movie. What I mean with the bad sex, great foreplay quote is that the commercials for this movie REALLY made me wanna see it. Then when I actually saw it via one of the finest bootlegs I've ever laid my eyes on (holla at the man in front of the Wal-Mart on North Ave.) the quality of the bootleg impressed me more than the actual movie.
As I watched, I kept feeling like I had seen and/or heard the story of the damsel in distress (Leslie Wright, played by Queen Latifah), who gets her Prince Charming (Scott McKnight, played by Common), despite her evil step-sisters (just one in this case, Morgan Alexander, played by Paula Patton). Oh yeah, I have! In nearly every fairy tale ever written! This movie merely substitutes the pumpkin carriage, the glass slipper, and the dance with the Prince at the ball for an old Mustang with a dented door, a "fixer-upper" of a house, and a superstar basketball player.
From the perspective of an avid basketball fan, I don't even know where to begin with the flaws this movie has. First of all, McKnight plays for the New Jersey Nets, who miraculously advance to the playoffs without their star player, though he manages to come back just in time to push them to the NBA Finals. That scenario is laughable, seeing as how the Nets are, literally, THE worst team in basketball (they finished with 12 wins and 70 losses this past season), but I won't hold the movie at fault for that since you can't predict the team about which you're about to film a movie losing 70 games as the movie premiers.
But, why did the team have to fare without their star player, you ask? Easy. He tore his PCL while attempting a spin move in the All-Star Game. For those who don't know, a PCL is a ligament in your knee, and while torn knee ligaments are somewhat commonplace in professional sports, they RARELY happen without force being delivered to the knee. That's almost as unbelievable as tearing your ACL coming down from a dunk. I'm referring to Love & Basketball, when that happened to Omar Epps, not the actual injury occurring to NBA player Shaun Livingston; THAT was genuinely disgusting.
Anyhow, there are a lot more basketball movie no-nos this movie committed, but I won't get too deeply into that. The acting job from Common is what one should expect from a rap star as opposed to an actual actor. Take that as you will. Hey, Queen Latifah got famous through rapping too, right? Take that as you will as well. Paula Patton does a great job as a gold-digging skeeza who successfully plots to capture Scott and pretend to genuinely love him to better herself, leaves as soon as he gets injured and is at risk of being cut from the Nets (as if that's a punishment), yet, comes back around after he's rejuvenated by Leslie, but to no avail. My only questions are, what is she doing during the scenes when Leslie and Scott get all lovey-dovey? And she obviously gets her comeuppance and realizes that being a gold-digging skeeza ain't all it's cracked up to be, but WHEN? Neither of those points are touched on in the film, and it left me disappointed. I'd really like to know what possesses skeezas to skeez, and what inspires them to walk away from the skeeza game altogether, but hey, that's just me.
The movie had a good message, though. It inspires one to use their heart and not their eyes when searching for a significant other, and tells all the young ballers with hoop dreams that if you spot a beautiful woman who goes outta her way to make it seem like she doesn't wanna date you for the money, she's probably a gold-digging skeeza lying through her teeth. But if you meet a woman who only offers inner beauty to most (I personally think Queen Latifah is beautiful physically as well), yet you can have a good time and have a genuine connection with her, she's probably a keeper. I agree with the point of the movie, personally, but that's a different blog for a different day.
In closing, if you're a fan of sweet and sappy love stories, you'd like to seen a modern update of the classic Cinderella story, or you're like me and just tend to love movies that are poorly received (ay, Kazaam is my shit! Fuck y'all, don't judge me), you should see this film at one point in time. If you watch movies based solely on critical reviews, go fly a kite, or whatever it is you people do.
~Trufe