Blog entry: I Got Something To Say Maaaaaannnnnn, Ya Diggggggggg?

How will I start?  I love hiphop, in fact, I am hiphop, but I have not related to the I am "Rich as F**k", hiphop American Dream. If I achieve that, no one will know it.  I will not be making it rain, nor pushing a car that will cost over $200K...just a regular cat.  Am I still hiphop after you read that?  I am in the latter part of my 30's and can still spit a rhyme on demand.  I know deejays, producers, breakers, graf writers, and musicians, singers, and emcees that made it, didn't make it and gave it up, and those that rep on stage for the love.  My rap career path was different, it wasn't failure, it wasn't fear, I just stopped being passionate because Chicago wasn't passionate...I put out a classic piece of wax in the late 90's with one of the top deejays today (currently at WGCI).  Here comes adulthood though:  I have been married before, got divorced, have two children (girls) that run my life.  So, I rep the urban struggle...the grown man's struggle!!  I am that dude that has the car that has that check engine light that shows up or goes away.  We all can relate.  I am hiphop!!

On the flipside, I got a pretty good job.  Got an undergrad from Chi State and a Masters from SXU.  Am I hiphop?  I say "yes", because I can relate to doing things to get me out of the hood instead of keeping me there drawing heat and animosity my way.  Some people say "no", because I am not "about that life" with a pocket full of money to trick off, standing on a corner that I don't own (We are starting not to like it, but Raum runs the city!!) I don't want to keep endangering my people. Shame on you, for saying dudes like me are lame for waking up or wanting to wake up the next day.  I am hiphop.

I want to see everyone with a goal or dream be successful, but where "hiphop" ("us", "we", "me", "you") has messed up is that once "we" get there, we start laughing at those who are not there yet or those that took a little longer to realize their true strengths.  We do it to each other...and WHY, when we have so many others that have done it to us, because they didn't grow up the way we did.  That goes for more than just music.  We are struggling creatively, socially, and economically.  So, who are we to act like we run this?  Hiphop taught us better...the real is out there.  Welcome back to the Stony Isle Profile.