[Video] VH1 rockDocs pres. Planet Rock: The Story Of Hip Hop And The Crack Generation (FULL Film)

This came out last Fall but I just spotted it on producer, Easy Mo Bee‘s Facebook page this morning. Narrated by Ice-T and featuring RZA, Raekwon the Chef, Snoop Dogg, Questlove, B-Real, Chuck D, Too $hort and Freeway Ricky Ross, the Johnny Appleseed of the crack era, this documentary is amazing. The story about George H.W. Bush’s crack cocaine television address (starts at 47:24) is (sadly) hilarious. Mo Bee breaks it down as a whole:

It’s been established that music is almost always indicative of the impact that it’s social surrounding provides. So when you fast forward from 1977 to almost 10 years ahead in a slightly more mature period of ’86 in Hip Hop music, we get a firsthand lyrical account (and even glorification at times) of all the damage and destruction that crack’s toll took on the surface of an average family or individual and their choice to get “paid in full” or not. On the even more losing end of this product is the customer or “victim”, so to speak. Also at this point (circa1986), Hip Hop is mightily influenced by the flash of materialism, better living and even powerful drug films like Scarface, New Jack City & Menace ll Society, etc. Could the plague of crack have all been a setup or did a lot of us just make some bad choices in our lives? Was Hip Hop ever used a pawn in the game to help spread the epidemic. So many questions, so many different answers. From the drug riddled hot summers of the mid-Eighties to present day, have we learned anything from the entire period of the past? Or is it just the case of one generations imitating another? The music has always said it all. “And you don’t stop” is right. “It goes on and on and on and on, the beat don’t stop til the break o’ dawn”. Some things never change. They remain the same. True dat. Just look around.

CLICK HERE to learn more.

Related:

How Hip-Hop Lost the War on Drugs by Touré [note: this is the original title of the article as seen on the mobile version, it has subsequently been retitled, ‘How America and hip-hop failed each other’]

[Music Video] Watch The Duck – Poppin’ Off In Atlanta

This is a good one, ‘SoulDubstep’ as they term it by new crew from the A, Watch The Duck. Think Zeds Dead meets Chicago juke music proponents, BBU with Mystikal (or is that a Pharrell/N*E*R*D influence??) hollerin’ over top. Video features the DragonHouse dancers. I digs. What y’all think though??

[Audio] Frank Ocean – Channel Orange (Full Album Stream)

Unless you’ve been living under a rock, you’re more than aware of the recent media interest around Frank Ocean. Timing couldn’t be better to have everyone talking about him for his official debut album, Channel Orange whose digital release was apparently pushed up to take advantage of the buzz. BTW: the video up top is of Ocean performing the single, “Bad Religion” from Channel Orange with The Roots on ‘Late Night with Jimmy Fallon’ last night.

Previously on The Kitchen:

– Frank Ocean of Odd Future (OFWGKTA) – Nostalgia, Ultra (FULL album stream)

– 64 Unreleased Songs from Frank Ocean

A Look at the Polaris Long List: 33. John K. Samson – Provincial

Solo outing by the lead singer of Winnipeg group, The Weakerthans. Yes, you guessed it: more folky flavored singer-songwriter indie sounds. To be fair, it actually did sound pretty good (click the player above to hear for yourself) but honestly, how much of this f-cking stuff does the world need??! Sometimes I get frustrated ‘cos I can’t get people excited by what I think is an exceptionally well-made hip hop album. And I’ve dismissed other albums for Polaris nomination advocacy consideration on my part that turn out to dust the floor with a lot of these long list-nominated albums I’ve been listening to the past couple of weeks and, in hindsight, maybe I should have given that shot to after all. Or maybe that’s just me.

Back to Mr. Samson though. I guess credit due for being able to write a song out of a real life petition he launched? Or is he just another privileged white dude writing about privileged white guy problems? Well not to end on a provocative or negative note though. I did like the track, “The Last And” and if anyone can tell me what prayer he swiped the melody for “Stop Error” from, I’d appreciate it because it’s driving me crazy trying to recall it.

[album stream via exclaim!]

Michael Joseph Jackson: August 29, 1958 – June 25, 2009

Still the King and G.O.A.T. “I Want You Back” is my favorite pop song of all time and how I feel. R.I.P. we still miss you three years later, Michael.