battlin'

so...apparently Nas' name came up in the latest ghostwriting exposé.

folks are upset.
me? not so much.

a disclaimer: i've always been more partial to R&B than hip hop, mainly because singers were more accessible.  my mom pretty much hated rap and thought it was all flin flarn filth, so i didn't start buying hip hop until, say, 8-10th grade when i had a bit more autonomy.  although i love it and see it as a part of the fabric of my generation, i accept that i don't "care" enough about this kind of stuff to be angry, or even disappointed. 

that said...

in most other music, we've come to accept that the greatest lyricists/songwriters are not always the great performers, and vice versa.  the great Black music houses employed songwriting teams whose names were often only bandied about by musicologists and die hard fans.  everyone else was focused on the performers.  

i didn't know until i was half grown that one of my favorite vocalists, Luther Vandross, built a stellar career remaking other people's hit songs.  i never heard him called a fraud.  on the contrary, even folks who remembered the originals often preferred Luther's versions.  put simply: no matter what he sang, no one sang it like he did. 

at its inception, hip hop was the next phase of Black music in America (by way of Jamaica).  the genre grew and expanded as its listeners and performers did.  it wasn't like there was an emcee program at Julliard  teaching the fine arts of cadence and metaphor.

in the main, hip hop was built on pure, raw talent--a voice of urban youth.  it did not emerge from a movement of "trained" musicians or artists. (note: there were--and are--exceptions.  and Nas' father is a musician in his own right).  to me, that suggests a naturally collaborative atmosphere: i can write the rhymes, but you flow better...and neither of us is dope with the beats, so...  

given the output expected of signed artists, how would most manage to write every rhyme, every single time, on their own, from lived experience--no matter how gritty?  genius-level output doesn't happen every day, or even every generation.  by the odds, it makes sense that occasionally someone would write a few bars for someone else. 

folks would probably argue that you "always" know who wrote a song, but ghostwriters get no credit.  well, i'm sure someone got a paycheck.  besides, have any of us figured out all of Prince's aliases yet?  there's plenty of stuff that's been done for the love, the exposure, insiders, or all of the above.        

any art form carries a standard of authenticity, and some are going to take that standard more seriously than others.  it's the constant battle between the sell-outs and the real heads.  fortunately or unfortunately, that's led to the obfuscation of certain information in hip hop circles.

bottom line: can many emcees flow like Nas? no.

plus, it isn't as if he never proved his capability.  if he let someone else do some heavy lifting for a bit, so be it.  according to author of the article, the ghostwritten items never worked as well as his own stuff, so maybe this will push Nas to some new, better work.  


but all this lamenting around "keeping it real"?

stop it, b.

Menhit: the "other" lioness

my exploration of a Nubian lioness who became a fixture of Kemetic spirituality.

the fabulous margaret cho

i cannot express how deeply i identify with this:

I fly my flag of self-esteem for all those who have been told they were ugly and fat and hurt and shamed and violated and abused for the way they look and told time and time again that they were "different" and therefore unlovable. Come to me and I will tell you and show you how beautiful and loved you are and you will see it and feel it and know it and then look in the mirror and truly believe it. If you are offended by my anger and my might at defending my borders and my people you do not deserve entry into my beloved and magnificent country.

i've had relationships that were about this. my goddess...

but...her message is much bigger than this quote. read on.

boundaries!

my first video blog: a little something on good boundaries and how they keep us on track.

this blog: version 3.1*

peace & blessings, beloveds!

obviously there have been some changes around here--with more coming.  including video blogs!

i'm kinda trying to hype myself up there.  i'm not really into the idea of slapping my mug up here, for a variety of reasons.  but...when Spirit speaks, i listen.  and the truth is, it's time to combat some of the wack interesting things floating around in the name of knowledge and understanding.

plus, i'm a bit slicker than i've let on.  time to own that and put in some work.

but that's enough tooting my own horn.  if you want a taste of some of the things i'll be touching on, check out Queen Mother Imakhu's podcasts or her youtube channel.    

i'm also in the process of starting my reiki practice, so there will be some cross-posting re: healing energy work.  if you'd like more information on that, feel free to comment here or get in touch directly.

so there you have it: the long version of my vague little update from two weeks ago.  and...there's more coming.  god/dess ain't finished with me yet.

as always, whether you comment often or never, i sincerely appreciate you reading and following along with me. let's go! (c) casamena

m khut n mer**,

Nuit Menhit (Omi)



*i think. i can't keep up. lol.

**m khut n mer is a kemetic salutation that essentially translates to "in light and love".

it's that time of year again...

april is national poetry writing month, and i've decided to do napowrimo via posts on the writing blog.

that said, i'll probably be pretty scarce here this month--not that i've had a lot of time to blog regularly anyway.  obviously. more on that a little later...  

in any case, you can follow the poem postings on the blog, thru its rss feed, or on twitter.  enjoy!

keep your laws off my body

loving every word of this...

THANK you. FINALLY.

someone said it:

So it is extremely intellectually disingenuous to suggest that a specific critique is exactly the same as a fullscale attack. It seems that what you are really saying is that racism beats Black men down so much, that even when they do sh*t that’s clearly egregious, we should let it go, so that we don’t ally with THE MAN against Black men. And that argument is the height of whackness, not to mention the fact that it makes me think you’re living in 1970 and not 2010.

We make no apologies for critiquing brothers when they deserve it, or for speaking unapologetically about the concerns of sisters. We also don’t buy the logic that our failure to speak about every instance of sexist activity in the mainstream undercuts the legitimacy of our feminist politics or makes us call Black men into question. If you had actually checked out the articles on this site, you would see that in the last week, the most viewed article was a critique of Regis Philbin for grabbing Nicki Minaj’s ass. And the comments that we got from many brothers was that she deserved it.

So since many of you aren’t down for the cause, we are down for own. Unapologetically.

this is an excerpt from one of crunktastic's comments, but you can see the entire, fabulously executed post here.

singlehood chronicles #8

i am still stuck on this:

Over the weekend, I got to hang out with some CFs in Atlanta, all single, or kind of single, and primarily straight. Each of us found ourselves in varied states of relational ambivalence: loving or liking someone who doesn’t quite love (or like) you back, at least not in the way you deserve; fearful of trying to date again after years of disappointment and failed expectations; and recovering from heart break or at least deeply hurt feelings. Yet, we are all also unapologetically pragmatic about getting our needs met even when conditions prove non-ideal. As a pragmatist, I had to ask, “is it feminist to remain in a situation where you aren’t getting what you need or want, but you are at least getting something?” What I heard was a collective groan, as we all thought it through. And then after that, a painful, collective, and resolved sigh.

No, probably not. But it is what it is...

And IT is the condition in which we find ourselves. Perpetually alone. Needing love, needing companionship, needing sex. But willing to settle for less than, if only for a moment, even as the sermons, feminist and otherwise, play in the background. Is love enough? In the lonely moments of an otherwise full life, love definitely seems like the solution, like the stitching that turns a beautiful piece of fabric into the form-fitting number that accentuates the best parts of yourself. For all of us who don’t have the love that we so desperately want, it most definitely feels like enough.

But is it really?

i know it's not enough for me.

sometimes, the "close, but no cigar" moments leave me just as despondent, heartbroken, and sore as a ended relationship would.  still, like crunktastic, i find myself asking, "what would i have otherwise?"

sometimes i feel brave, loving how i can, where i can. but when i get frustrated, the part of me that needs one true, real love feels like i'm selling out.

i'm still trying to reconcile those selves...balance the needs with the wants, the reality with my dreams.

the only thing i'm sure of is that it has to be a sin that we cannot love better than this. that freedom, intelligence, and depth seem to make you a lonelier woman, rather than a cherished, genuinely sought after one. 

thus sayeth my moment of vulnerability.

*re-armors and picks up sword*

i'm still a soldier.

sometimes you feel like you're by yourself out here... (c) e. badu

but i'm glad that ain't true.

check out this post over at new model minority.

addendum: oh, and while you're at it, check out this one, too.

brilliant

clamavi ad te

update: life

i fussed at someone else about writing recently, but i've been finding it hard to get back in the saddle myself.  so here goes:

the move went well. my bedroom is coming along splendidly, even without a proper dresser. got my eyes on this one. the plan is an elemental theme: ocean bedroom, earth/sky bathroom, fire living room.

 i'm cooking more and enjoying every minute of it. i'm also completely geeked by the create channel.

house porn still makes me inordinately happy.

i'm sleeping well and i love my new improved commute. it's far more befitting a sane person.

i'm enjoying family, friends and laughter.

work is pleasantly mellow. but that probably won't last long.  soaking it up while i can.  

recently rediscovered papaya juice. yum.

hope y'all are enjoying yourselves, too...

reading list for orisa devotees

folks are always asking...

so here ya go!

"those damn mexicans" - oh really?

you have to see this.

you just have to.

*waving hello*

i'm astonished that there seem to be so many folks stopping through here.  some probably on random web searches...but still.

i'd love for y'all to say hi! ...well, unless you're spammers or something.

otherwise, don't be shy. join the conversation!

in like a lamb, out like a lion

march was full...all kinds of travel, a blissful birthday, and lots of pleasant, deeply welcome surprises...

i tend to write more (and better) when i'm settled, so all the running around has taken me away from my creative projects.  but if you'd like an update...

i am saddened by the recent DC shootings and disappointed by offshore drilling plans. erykah's still giving me hope that there is some creativity left in the world, and i am always grateful for good news about africa.

haiti is still on my heart, and i pray for a merciful hurricane season for us all.  i'm unnerved by the differing faces and levels of terrorism both abroad and at home.

i am also reading armah's two thousand seasons, which is still so relevant to the ongoing struggle within the hearts, minds and spirits of black folks.  i know affordable copies can be hard to find; i got mine here, thanks to bilal sankofa. it's a jewel.

so...that's a snapshot of my life at the moment.  hopefully i'll be rambling on and on about something on these virtual pages very soon.

be blessed,

omi

it's complicated

someone posted this on facebook yesterday.

overall, it's beautifully written. i think the sentiment is sincere.

but it also assumes a level of choice that many communities of color do not/did not have in the "creolization" of themselves.

in other words, a modern day jewish woman's decision to marry a hindu man--both of you knowing your extended family histories--is a little different than the hows and whys surrounding the reasons native americans/1st nations, black folks, and latin@s exist in a variety of shades and hair textures.

and by a "little" different, i mean a lot.

it's difficult for me to allow the author to explain that away--however poetically--to solidify her child's multi-ethnic identity, even as i agree that, in her family's case, "no such thing as half" is relatively true.

her daughter can be everything at once because it's now.

born 60, 70--even 20 or 30 years ago, depending--she would have been jewish. period.  and her mormon dad probably would have had an awfully hard way to go.

i'm also assuming that, phenotypically, the author, her husband and daughter present as white/european-descended.  how many people--outside of her spiritual spheres--are going to ask her if she's "half" anything?

see how fuzzy that gets? 

what do y'all think when you read this?

hope somebody puts this on obama's desk...

drew westen's "all the president's values".

an excerpt:

But even when [George W. Bush] was lying through his teeth, lying through somebody else's teeth (like Colin Powell's at the United Nations), or bombing the wrong country, you knew where he stood. He had beliefs. He had principles. He had values.

Mind you, I didn't agree with any of those beliefs, principles, or values. But once Bush took off the "compassionate conservative" Halloween costume he wore for the 2000 election, he generally told us what he believed in and pursued it as vigorously as he asserted it.

For example, Bush thought gay people like his vice president's daughter were a threat to civilization (okay, maybe he had a point about Liz Cheney), so he tried to sell a Constitutional amendment to make them the official lepers of the United States (since both he and Jeb still needed Hispanics, and we already had a national flower).

He believed abortion was murder and that premarital sex was a sin (once he was no longer premarital, of course), so he used the big stick of both U.S. aid abroad and the federal government at home to prevent everyone he could from getting an abortion, a condom, or accurate information about birth control.

He thought everyone should be able to carry an AK-47 into church, so he opened an office of faith-based initiatives and let the ban on assault weapons sunset.

And he believed that monopolies constitute a free market and that profits are good no matter how you get them, so he gave taxpayer subsidies to oil companies while gas was at $4.00 a gallon and handed the national car keys to Wall Street traders along with a fifth of Jack Daniels and a race track.

Okay, so he wasn't among, say, our top 43 presidents.

But I wouldn't mind hearing about values from our current president. And more importantly, I wouldn't mind seeing him act on them, whatever they are.

i know obama's in a nearly impossible position, and i think i understand what he's spent most of this first year trying to do, i.e., seeing how far he can get while stepping on as few toes as possible.

but precisely because he's in that impossible position, he's also going to have to take some risks.

the situation was pretty much fked when he got there.
there would have been challenges facing any president after dubya's mess.

but we need more. lots more.  and he's gonna have to get stepping on those toes so we can see what he's made of and act accordingly.

my heart still believes, and i've been saying since january 09 that we should give him at least a year before complaining too loudly.

well, that year's almost here.  and i'm not impressed.  yet.

step up, mr. president.  shut the haters down. 

oh, yes.

evan handler's "america, i love you. americans on the other hand..."

weaning from myspace / "new" blog

'cause i'm crazy, i've opened up yet another blog.

it's not truly new since i've been posting this stuff on myspace for the last few years.  but having everything on blogspot makes a whole slew of things much easier. 

i'm transferring pieces and deleting content from myspace as i go, so if you want to read more poetry/estoteric type stuff, check this out.