Hammer Magazine

This is a Public Announcement: In Regards to Trumpet X Records

2014-09-18T18:40:00.000-07:00

September 18, 2014

This is a Public Announcement: In Regards to Trumpet X Records

It is out of great humility and disappoint that I must address the serious nature concerning Trumpet X Records, the music artist who were apart of that label, my hope to help heal the lives and hearts of those affected, and to help set a peaceful course for all who are involved.

I am a man who has great respect music artist and and the good business that goes into their development and growth and I also have respect for myself, and our mission. As you know, I do not readily submit to public talks like this, nor am I frequently seen at events; for I am not before you of myself, nor do I do what I do to be seen of men or women.

Therefore, I have never tried to abuse, or misuse anyone to seek advantage for myself, or any other. So, in calling your attention to this, because of the serious nature of this Announcement that I am about to make; an Announcement on which hangs the future of music artists in particular to Trumpet X Records, and those who support them out of love and compassion.

“It is written in the book of Ezekiel, “When I say unto the wicked, You shall surely die; and you give him not warning, nor speak to warn the wicked from his wicked way, to save his life; the same wicked man shall die in his iniquity; but his blood will I require at your hand.

“Yet if you warn the wicked, and he turn not from his wickedness, nor from his wicked way, he shall die in his iniquity; but you have delivered your soul.”

As of today September 18, 2014. I have resigned from my appointed position of President of Trumpet X Records and Sr. Vice President of Anaheim Sportswear LLC. This is a judgement call that I believe is perfectly correct, well needed and right on TIME. As well as a humbly attempt to remove the blood off of my hands to not only deliver my soul, but to help deliver the souls of others.

I never liked the idea of titles. Perhaps this is why it has taken me so long to address this matter. Because I did not really understand how much power came with those particular titles and positions I mentioned. It was and still is my deep hope to help music artist enjoy a full and complete freedom of expression through beautiful sounds that families can use to help create peaceful lives and environments.

“The More Than A Vision Volume 1 Album” compilation released by Trumpet X Records on September 17, 2013 featured Milo Sheff, Amora,Kewi, Beyond Excellence, G Nice, Juspin Jones, Dj 12 Tribe, D’ROK. anda bonus track called “Not What U Lookin Fo” by Problem 13. Although I believe personally that these combinations of styles and songs presented acceptable and clean music. The business operations behind it and above my level where absolutely self centered, vile, unethical, unlawful, unrighteous, unsavory,vicious, and completely unlike what all should expect and what I expected.

I believe that most of the agreement by and between Trumpet X Records and the music artist involved was very good and could have worked if everyone just stuck to the script as it was written, worked in unity and separated from normal music industry business that we know of which really degrades the perfection of; good music and conduct. I never like the payout per song download. That was not my idea. I wanted a fair compensation for all, that we would grow and develop bigger things together. I wanted all of us to be as “creative as our own nature is”.

This was not my company. I was called into this company by David Clark. who studied me for over a period of TIME. and appointed me into the position of President of Trumpet X Records. With the task of creating this so called record label, recruiting talent, building the brand, and soon after he fired the Marketing Vice President. I was left with the burden of Marketing all of this being very unqualified, and no budget in place.

All of the design from Trumpet X Records to Anaheim Sports Wear came from me and my 25 years of experience in music of which I still have yet to be compensated for. How ever, because I believed this could work to help build good business, improve lives and community development. I embrace this task and tried to move forward until now.

You may say what has changed? Thats a very good question. On NOVEMBER 7, 2013

I was ordered by the Chairmen of the board of directors for Trumpet X Entertainment,LL which governs Trumpet X Records (DBA) to send out a Termination Letter to all the music artist mentioned above. Which was also something I did not want to do.

“Dear Musician/Artist Currently on Trumpet X Records,

As Instructed by The CEO/Chairman of the Board of Directors for Trumpet X Entertainment, LLC which governs all aspects of Trumpet X Records your current Record Label. And enforced and construed according to the laws of the State of Nevada.

It is my duty as The President of Trumpet X Records to inform you of our intent to Terminate you from being a Trumpet X Records Music artist unless you comply and remedy the reasons stated hereafter within 30 days of this notice, upon which we will move forward and absolutely finalize this termination.

As stated in our work for hire agreement with you, With reasonable cause, Trumpet X Records reserves the right to cancel this Agreement without obligation by giving written notice to the Musicians/Artists of the intent to terminate. This is your written notice.

1. CONTRIBUTION BY Musicians/Artists . Musicians/Artists agrees to fully cooperate with Trumpet X Records, in good faith.

Full Cooperation means to totally and completely work or act together toward a common end or purpose.The common end or purpose as defined in our Work For Hire Agreement with you was WHEREAS, the Parties both intend for Trumpet X Records to be considered the administrator of the Work for the purposes of sales, distribution and marketing all copyright and intellectual property issues, and for Trumpet X Records to be the sole and exclusive owner of this Album by permission of the artist who shall reserve all rights to music works with the understanding that as a Trumpet X Records Musicians/Artists you are only entitled to what is held in this agreement.

You were asked several times by the administrators of Trumpet X Records to help share the links to where The More Than A Vision Album is being sold on www.trumpetxrecords.com, you were asked to use social media to expand your fan base, And as of November 11, 2013 You still refuse to cooperate with the efforts set before you by the administration of Trumpet X Records. It is very unfortunate that you and or some of you by your own admissions have decided not to work as a team in order to reach the contractual goals as written in the Work For Hire agreement.

At this time, Trumpet X Records reserves our rights not to disclose any other information to you or any other third party until we receive a written notification from you of your intent to resolve this matter by way of making the appropriate amendments which should be in your best interest. Or to continue as is and we will proceed accordingly.”

These are actual facts of what took place. And shortly after this fall out. I realised that that sooner or later I would have to distance myself from this type of poor leadership, and misconduct. Well, today is that day. And this is a much needed and deserved “New Beginning” for not just myself. But for each one of those artist and more. As My last act as President of Trumpet X Records and to help bring healing and secure justice for all who have suffered from this. I am invoking my right to make a heavy judgement call according to this written policy for Trumpet X Records:

“ Article 18. TERMINATION/General Information: Musicians/Artists may not cancel this agreement at anytime. This agreement constitutes the entire understanding and contract between the parties and supersedes any and all prior oral or written agreements. Any modifications to this agreement must be in writing and signed only by The Vice-President of Music, The President and C.E.O. or authorized officer of Trumpet X Records. All representations not in writing are null and void.”

It is under the entitlement of the current President of Trumpet X Records which is a (DBA) of Trumpet X Entertainment, LLC in conjunction with Anaheim SportsWear,LLC. Based on 7260 W. Azure Dr. Ste 140-212 in Las Vegas, NV 89130. That I invoke my powers as President of Trumpet X Records squarely based on article 18 above to modify the previous written music artist agreement by and between Trumpet X Records and the music artist mentioned above in order to resolve a dispute permanently for the sake of all involved herein.

Some may be saying, can he do that? Is this real? You damn right I can and this is an Executive Order that will stand true from my current position as of today September 18, 2014. That Executive Order is as follows:

Executive Order

BY THE CURRENT POSITION OF POWER TO MODIFY AS IT WAS WRITTEN IN ARTICLE 18 AND LAST ACT AS PRESIDENT OF TRUMPET X RECORDS A (DBA) OF TRUMPET X ENTERTAINMENT,LLC IT HEREBY EXERCISE THAT RIGHT IN THIS ORDER:

All written agreements by and between Trumpet X Records and all the music artist involved in all the music album/or song releases in the year 2013 are voided.
All compensations and non payments will be charged to TRUMPET X ENTERTAINMENT, LLC AND IT’S OWNERS EFFECTIVE IMMEDIATELY.
Anyone who has not been compensated accordingly should address this concern directly to David Clark from this day forward (702)466-7575 who should comply. In a timely manner.
All confidential information in my possession will be destroyed.
No retaliation from Trumpet X Entertainment,LLC it’s owners or anyone associated with them will occur. And if so done the owners of Trumpet X Entertainment, LLC will be held liable for no less than $50,000 per person not to exceed more than $125,000 per person under all laws and judicial areas governed by The United States of America. This includes threats, any and all expressions of intentions to inflict evil, injury, or damage against any music artist mentioned above or persons including my family and myself, via social media or otherwise.
THE “MORE THAN A VISION VOLUME 1 ALBUM” AND “NOT WHAT U LOOKIN FO” SINGLE WILL BE CANCELED AND DEACTIVATED as of friday September 19, 2014 and this action is Non-REVERSIBLE. Once canceled, this album and single cannot be reactivated. If you choose to release this album or single again, a NEW BARCODE and submission will be required. When the cancellation request goes through, there will be a issued removal requests to any digital distribution partner that were selected to also deactivate digital sales.Once issued, the removals can take up to 30 days to process.The release page on the Trumpet X Records site, if canceled, will be deactivated within 1 business day of cancellation.
All promotional material used to promote any of the artist from the above mentioned MUST BE COMPLETELY DESTROYED AT ONCE.
EVERY ARTIST MENTIONED ABOVE NOW HAS THE RIGHT TO USE THEIR SONG AS THEY CHOOSE.
ALL SOCIAL MEDIA ACTIVITIES CONTAINING ANY OF THIS INFORMATION MUST BE SHUT DOWN IF APPLICABLE.
All defamation and slander MUST be removed IMMEDIATELY from social media or otherwise.
THERE SHALL BE NO ATTEMPT TO CONTACT ME BY ANY MEMBER OF TRUMPET X ENTERTAINMENT, LLC BY ANY LAWYER OR THIRD PARTY UNLESS WILLING TO OFFER AND PRESENT ALL COMPENSATIONS THAT I HAVE NOT RECEIVED. If so done, this will be viewed as HARASSMENT and subject to this law as follows:

2005 Connecticut Code - Sec. 53a-183. Harassment in the second degree: Class C misdemeanor.

Sec. 53a-183. Harassment in the second degree: Class C misdemeanor. (a) A person is guilty of harassment in the second degree when: (1) By telephone, he addresses another in or uses indecent or obscene language; or (2) with intent to harass, annoy or alarm another person, he communicates with a person by telegraph or mail, by electronically transmitting a facsimile through connection with a telephone network, by computer network, as defined in section 53a-250, or by any other form of written communication, in a manner likely to cause annoyance or alarm; or (3) with intent to harass, annoy or alarm another person, he makes a telephone call, whether or not a conversation ensues, in a manner likely to cause annoyance or alarm.

(b) For purposes of this section such offense may be deemed to have been committed either at the place where the telephone call was made, or at the place where it was received.

(d) Harassment in the second degree is a class C misdemeanor.

(1969, P.A. 828, S. 185; 1971, P.A. 871, S. 44; P.A. 89-103, S. 2; P.A. 90-282, S. 2; P.A. 95-143, S. 2.)

History: 1971 act substituted "telegraph" for "telephone" in Subsec. (a) (2); P.A. 89-103 amended Subsec. (a)(2) to include communicating by electronically transmitting a facsimile through connection with a telephone network; P.A. 90-282 changed name of offense to harassment in the second degree; P.A. 95-143 amended Subsec. (a) to include in Subdiv. (2) communication by computer network.

Annotation to former section 53-183:

Conversation sought to be introduced to show bias of witness properly excluded as hearsay. 5 Conn. Cir. Ct. 60.

Annotations to present section:

Cited. 204 C. 4, 6. Cited. 209 C. 52, 53.

Cited. 4 CA 520, 523. Cited. 5 CA 79, 80. Cited. 8 CA 598, 599. Cited. 43 CA 527. Cited. 44 CA 84.

Cited. 39 CS 428, 429. Cited. 43 CS 46, 52. Internet service provider has federal immunity from tort liability for damages related to e-mail sent via provider's service. 46 CS 406.

Subsec. (a):

Subdiv. (3) cited. 223 C. 731, 733.

Subdiv. (3): Harassment and threatening are separate and distinct crimes and this case harassment is not a lesser included offense of threatening. 1 CA 647, 649. Subdiv. (2) cited. 4 CA 520, 525, 526. Subdiv. (3) cited. 5 CA 79, 83, 84. Subdiv. (3) cited. 25 CA 503, 505. Subdiv. (2): Section does not require state to prove defendant engaged in a direct communication with the person whom he intended to harass. 40 CA 544-546, 549-553. Subdiv. (3) cited. 41 CA 847, 848. Subdiv. (3) cited. 43 CA 527. Subdiv. (3): Is not unconstitutionally vague either on its face or as applied to defendant's conduct. 46 CA 661. Subdiv. (2): Not unconstitutionally overbroad or vague. 49 CA 617. Subdiv. (3): Statute is not unconstitutionally overbroad; statute prohibits purposeful telephone harassment and does not involve first amendment concerns since it proscribes conduct and not the content of calls. 55 CA 475. Subdiv. (3): Section is not unconstitutionally vague as applied to defendant's conduct. Id. Criminal violation of a protective order pursuant to Sec. 53a-110b and harassment in the second degree pursuant to Subdiv. (3) constitute separate offenses for double jeopardy purposes. 61 CA 118.

Subdiv. (3): Freedom of speech subject to reasonable regulation of place and manner of exercise. Not necessary to limit application of statute to "fighting words". The prohibition is against purposeful harassment by means of device readily susceptible of abuse; trespasser upon our privacy. 34 CS 689, 690, 695, 696, 698. Subdiv. (3) cited. 43 CS 46, 71. Cited. Id., 46, 74.

Sec. 53a-182b. Harassment in the first degree: Class D felony. (a) A person is guilty of harassment in the first degree when, with the intent to harass, annoy, alarm or terrorize another person, he threatens to kill or physically injure that person or any other person, and communicates such threat by telephone, or by telegraph, mail, computer network, as defined in section 53a-250, or any other form of written communication, in a manner likely to cause annoyance or alarm and has been convicted of a capital felony, a class A felony, a class B felony, except a conviction under section 53a-86 or 53a-122, a class C felony, except a conviction under section 53a-87, 53a-152 or 53a-153, or a class D felony under sections 53a-60 to 53a-60c, inclusive, 53a-72a, 53a-72b, 53a-95, 53a-103, 53a-103a, 53a-114, 53a-136 or 53a-216. For the purposes of this section, "convicted" means having a judgment of conviction entered by a court of competent jurisdiction.

(b) For purposes of this section, such offense may be deemed to have been committed either at the place where the telephone call was made or where it was received.

(d) Harassment in the first degree is a class D felony.

Romans 2:12 ASV

American Standard Version

For as many as have sinned without law shall also perish without the law: and as many as have sinned under the law shall be judged by the law;

Romans 2:12 BBE

Bible in Basic English

All those who have done wrong without the law will get destruction without the law: and those who have done wrong under the law will have their punishment by the law;

Romans 2:12 NIRV

New International Reader's Version

Some people do not know God's law when they sin. They will not be judged by the law when they die. Others do know God's law when they sin. They will be judged by the law.

Galatians 3:10

For all who rely on works of the law are under a curse; for it is written, “Cursed be everyone who does not abide by all things written in the Book of the Law, and do them.”

Galatians 3:19

Why then the law? It was added because of transgressions, until the offspring should come to whom the promise had been made, and it was put in place through angels by an intermediary.

Ephesians 2:10 For we are his workmanship, created in Christ for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.

By the power vested in me, as the current President of Trumpet X Records, I HEREBY DECLARE THE IMMEDIATE RELEASE OF THE ABOVE MENTIONED SONGS FROM TRUMPET X RECORDS according to the terms above, signatures below, and UNDER EVERY LAW CONCERNED IN THIS MATTER UNDER THE UNITED STATES, JURISDICTION AND COUNTY.

I pray that Allah (God) we be pleased with me And that all who read this will live in peace love and happiness. Go forth and use your talents and gifts to help change the conditions of all who are suffering. Forgive me if I have error and forgive those who have error against you and myself. We are the people of Allah (God) who should be turning towards him that he may hear our cry and heal our lives and our land. If I never get to speak to you again. Know that I have always tried to be your brother and a good friend. Know that none of our mistreatment was by my own design. And give a pardon to yourselves and each other. As I must beg the pardon of Allah (God0 for myself and my own family. I pray that I have approach this correctly in the spirit of truth and atonement. Lets heal from our suffering and afflictions.

IT IS ORDERED, that this agreement shall stand true from September 18,2014 and from this day forth.

I am your Brother and friend

Chris Muhammad

Former President of Trumpet X Records as of the date above

Breaking News! TuneIn has partnered with Unsigned City Radio to give music lovers more choices.

2014-06-03T13:42:00.000-07:00

TuneIn is available anywhere you happen to be

And so is Unsigned City Radio.

Great news for all the listeners of Unsigned City Radio and everyone who loves old & new Hip Hop, R&B, and Indie Music! As of June 3, 2014, we are now a part of the TuneIn network, making our streaming radio station perfectly available on TuneIn apps for iPhone, Blackberry, and Android phones and on many other popular internet radio apps and devices powered by TuneIn.

What is TuneIn?
TuneIn enables people to discover, follow, and listen to what's most important to them — from sports, to news, to music, to talk. TuneIn provides listeners access to over 100,000 real radio stations and more than four million pod-casts streaming from every continent.

We are everywhere

We are Launching various ways for our listeners to have more hear what they want while they're on the go, and TuneIn is placing Unsigned City Radio within your reach wherever you are. Whether it's smartphones, cars, digital radios or smart TVs, TuneIn has you covered.

Promote Our Brand

Our radio brand and shows are displayed to people listening to Unsigned City Radio. TuneIn also will be featuring our Twitter stream so our listeners can connect with us on a deeper level.

Attracting New Listeners

Over 50 Million people use TuneIn, and they’re looking for great things to listen to. When people search for artists, songs, teams, or personalities, TuneIn introduces them to Unsigned City Radio. Then we introduce music artist and businesses to our listeners.

This is really a perfect opportunity of indie music artist and big & small business to get in on if you want to get more people to know about what you're offering. For details, contact support@hammermag.com

Ongoing Support

We are humbly thankful that TuneIN handles thousands of technical questions and will keep our app up to date across a growing list of devices. This lets Unsigned City Radio spend less time and money fielding questions and building apps and more time focusing on other priorities. Our number 1 priority is our music listeners, music artist and businesses.

Helping each one of them to grow and develop on greater levels is our main concern.

Who Else is on the TuneIn Network?

Great question! Unsigned City Radio is pleased to announce that we are taking our seat next to great radio stations like:

Lite-1005-WRCH
WNHU-887
WPKN-895
WNPR
HOT-93.7
KISS-95.7
WCBS-FM and so so many more great stations

And the Price is Right

Better yet, it is FREE! Yes you can download the TuneIn app for free and search for Unsigned City Radio. So don't wait get the TuneIn app today and search for us now!

Click here to enjoy
http://tunein.com/radio/Unsigned-City-Radio-s224544/

New Haven Connecticut girl, age 12, reported missing. Please share this and help the family.

2014-02-21T22:41:00.000-08:00

NEW HAVEN >> State police issued a Silver Alert Thursday night for a missing city girl.

Edsaida Hernandez, 12, was last seen on Thursday, Feb. 20 wearing a light green and white hoodie with blue jeans. Edsaida is white with black hair and brown eyes. She stands at 5'1" and weighs 120 pounds.

Edsaida is considered to be an endangered runaway. Police say she may be in the area of Farren Avenue and Fulton Street.

Anyone with information is asked to contact police at 203-946-6316.

Are People Eating Human Bodies and Don't Even Know It? | Hammer Magazine Research Team Demands The TRUTH! And so should you!

2014-02-20T17:44:00.000-08:00

"Where's the beef?"

This was a catchphrase in the United States and Canada. The phrase originated as a slogan for the fast food chain Wendy's. But could we be gearing up to say to the world of burger business, "Where Are Our Babies or What Have You Done With Them?"

http://jha-noah.blogspot.com/2007/07/abortion-cannibalism.html

About 10 million people go missing in the U.S and U.K alone. Out of this figure half a million are never found. Some of these people are victims of crimes but some people who simply walked away from their homes and never came back. The United States Department of Justice estimates that over 700,000 children go missing each year. Most of those missing are from family abductions. According to David Krajicek who reported in his article America's Missing on http://www.crimelibrary.com/:

This report is not for the weak. This contains images that may not suit everyone. We are warning you in advance. Our intentions is to share with you from our research of these horrific crimes that are happening and being reported about. We don't expect you to believe anything we share with you. That is up to you. All we ask is that you go investigate what we share with you and see if it fits the description correctly.

"Reports of missing persons have increased sixfold in the past 25 years, from roughly 150,000 in 1980 to about 900,000 this year. The increase was driven in part by the country's growing population. But the numbers also indicate that law enforcement treats the cases more seriously now, including those of marginalized citizens.An astounding 2,300 Americans are reported missing every day, including both adults and children.But only a tiny fraction of those are stereotypical abductions or kidnappings by a stranger.For example, the federal government counted 840,279 missing persons cases in 2001. All but about 50,000 were juveniles, classified as anyone younger than 18."

Where are the the body's? These are very high numbers of missing human beings. And being that a current world population live counter has recently indicated that the total population on the earth has reached 7 billion. We must asked this question, how can there be so many people missing and no one out of the 7 billion or more people on the earth knows anything about it? Let us introduce you to a Jewish Rabbi who you may want to really listen to since many people feel they are reliable resource any way. Check out this interview with Jewish Zionist Rabbi Abe Finkelstein with a Christian Rabbi Abe Finkelstein , where the Rabbi admits the following in Part 5:

"We steal a hundred to three hundred thousand children a year, just here in this country and we drain their blood and we mix it with the passover bread and then we throw the bodies into the slaughter houses that we own and we grind up all the bodies into sausages and hamburgers, McDonalds is one of our favourite outlets and the people, they eat it them for breakfast they eat them for lunch."

Here is a video of a woman preparing a woman's placenta for a meal. Watch and share your thoughts.

Reclaim Your OWN EVERYTHING: How does it feel to be yourself?

2014-02-17T00:11:00.000-08:00

How does it feel to be yourself?

By: Laila Muhammad @lailamuhammad1

“Learn to... be what you are, and learn to resign with a good grace all that you are not.” ~Henri Frederic Amiel

[Editor’s note: The following article was requested from sister Laila Muhammad by our Chief Editor Chris Muhammad who wanted to release this and still will in Hammer Magazine Volume 19. But because of the TIME and the vital need for this type of information. We are sharing it with you at this time. When asked him why did you request her to write this article? He said," Black women in particular but all women must know their origin, know who they are and be able to express the contents of their character more efficient and effectively. How can any woman tell you who she is if she does not know herself? We need more women who are learning about who they really are and are willing to share that with others who are totally lost. So I reached out to our dear sister Laila Muhammad so she could help the process of our learning How To Reclaim Our Own Everything. Reclaim Allah, Reclaim Yourself, Reclaim our families Get up and Reclaim it all!!]

The most important question that we will ever get asked in our life is, who are you? And like so many of us, we struggle with the answer. Am I a Teacher, Nurse, Writer, Designer? At the end of our lives what will our legacy be? Will they say she was a good poet, a great dancer, an awesome singer? We are more than the titles people place on us. I am a mother, a sister, a friend, a dedicated woman to the mission of resurrecting our people. Hopefully, one day a good wife.

I have not always come to this realization that some people seem to have been born with. You know those who walk around with an innate sense of “knowing who they are”. No, not me, I didn't come into the full knowledge of what being a woman really means. Not by some “ah ha” moment, or some strange epiphany, reawakening, or by osmosis. I came into this via a painful process of broken hearts, low self-esteem, bad break-ups, identity issues, and practically hitting rock bottom before rebuilding myself.

I read that the Chinese, when something of value breaks, instead of throwing it away, they simply fill in the cracks with gold, and then that broken thing, which was once so ugly, so fragile, and hopeless, becomes something of immeasurable value and beauty. That’s the key to loving yourself. You have to know that you are the only one, with the help of God who can change your life. And you are worth it.The most six important words I can ever pass on to anyone is to accept your own and be yourself. But once you forgo all the labels people have placed on you, you will truly be free to become everything you can imagine. You will write your own history. I realized that only I, can define me, and I have to be the one to choose the things that make me, me.

All my life I’ve tried so hard to fit it, to be a cookie cutter replica of those who I thought were the perfect women. I changed my dress to suit their style. I went against my internal spirit that told me it was okay to be a square peg in a round hole, so I bent, molded and broke myself in order to be fashioned by others. But one day, I looked in the mirror and realized that I didn't know the person staring back at me. So I made a decision, that from this day forward I would listen to that little voice inside of me that guides me. And slowly but surely, like waters push against rocks until streams are formed; I became myself more and more and that voice got louder.

I can say that it feels good to be free, to be honest with myself, to know my limitations, to make myself into whatever I want to be, to love freely, think clearly, speak with power and certainty, and look back on all the negatives in my life, and be grateful. Because, I understand every knock is a boost, so I have built a house on the stones that were thrown at me.

So ask yourself the question; How does it feel to be yourself, and if you don’t know right now, it’s okay, start small, and visualize who you actually want to be, make a plan on how to get there, and embrace every encounter as a stepping stone and learning opportunity to get you to your goal.

May Allah (God) bless you with the light of understanding, and may you forever walk therein.

Laila Muhammad is a Chicago based Writer, Videographer, and Final Call Production Assistant.

Note: Please comment on this article and let us know your thoughts

Genetic memory activated in Micheal K. Williams and Arsenio Hall overcome too

2014-02-16T13:15:00.001-08:00

Michael K. Williams (Omar from "The Wire") suffered an intense, emotional breakdown while shooting a scene for "12 Years a Slave." The details of the story were so overwhelming, even Arsenio couldn't contain his feelings.

Four Ways Technology Will Soon Update Your Wardrobe

2014-02-10T05:25:00.002-08:00

Sure, Google (GOOG) is making eye-computers and Nike (NKE) bracelets will watch you sleep, but there are plenty of other things happening on the wearable-tech front. Just take a look at the number of design patents filed in recent years.
On the ice-glazed streets of Manhattan this morning, while twiggy women teetered into Fashion Week tents pulsing with bass, a bunch of designers and attorneys gathered at Fordham University’s Fashion Law Institute to talk about patents, cool clothes, and the technology breakthroughs most likely change what we wear in the near future. Here are four big developments to watch:

Courtesy Beers, Friton, Hatfield; Portland, ORPatent illustration for Nike self-lacing shoes

1) Self-lacing shoes: Sneakerheads have been salivating for these since 1989, when Marty McFly sported a pair in Back to the Future II. A quirky little tech company named Nike (NKE) even recreated the shoes to much publicity in 2011—a tiny release to raise funds for the Michael J. Fox Foundation.

Now Nike has finally secured a patent for the kicks, which will feature a spring coil, a bunch of lights, and a dock to charge the shoes like a pair of giant rubber smartphones. Nike’s patent attorneys pointed out that the design could work in a wide range of footwear, including ice skates, ski boots, and cycling shoes. Will shoe chargers proves to be a game changer?

2) Smart purses: The potential for wireless—or “inductive”—charging is evident for anyone who has ever futzed with headphones on a crowded train or scoured a barren airport for an electric outlet. Last year Everpurse started selling handbags that charge smartphones with no plug required. Now the company is working on ways to have accessories alert people about lost keys or forgotten ID cards. Ultimately, it’s hoping to license the technology to a range of big-name apparel makers. “Co-branding is a big deal for us,” Everpurse founder Liz Salcedo said this morning. “We’d really like to have the ‘Intel-inside’ model.”

3) Body-scan bespoke: Think airport security meets Savile Row. A suit maker no longer needs a keen eye, a steady hand, and a few decades of tailoring experience to get a great fit; a fancy computer and a bunch of algorithms will work just fine.Accustom Apparel, a New York startup, performs body scans that collect more than 200,000 data points. Its tailors don’t even have to ask, “How’s it hanging?” (as some traditional suit makers do).

4) Computer camouflage: The seminal round of wearable tech gadgets wanted to make themselves known. They needed design that shouted: “Hey, this is a computer on a wrist/face/foot.” That kind of sartorial braggadocio is so 2013. Next season we’ll see a lot of cyber accessories with a fashion-forward face that cooly announces: “There might be a computer in here, but so what?” Google (GOOG) just announced a plan to offer four additional frames for its Glass product, fast shedding its Star Trek aesthetic. Meanwhile, Fitbit recently struck up a partnership with Tory Burch, for those who want to track their activity with something that looks “superchic,” or at least more sophisticated than children’s Play-Doh.

Did you know YouTube has a Dirty Little Secret?

2014-02-09T12:01:00.002-08:00

Brian Hazard

[Editor’s note: The following article contains excerpts from a post by Brian Hazard a recording artist from Huntington Beach, CA You can reach out to him and find out more about what he does on www.colortheory.com We are sharing this public information with you freely as it has been freely presented o us at no charge. And if you would like to be a guest writer, we invite you to simply contact us on our site www.hammermag.com, and just Say "I want to contribute my words" and tell us about you and how to contact you.]

Brian Hazard is a recording artist with eighteen years of experience promoting his ten Color Theory albums. His Passive Promotion blog emphasizes “set it and forget it” methods of music promotion. Brian is also the head mastering engineer and owner of Resonance Mastering in Huntington Beach, California.

Ever spotted a terrible video on YouTube with an inconceivably high view count? Of course you have. Would it make you feel better knowing that most of those “views” were completely automated and only lasted 30 seconds with the sound turned off?

Vagex (referral link), a hugely popular YouTube exchange platform, is largely to blame. Credits are so cheap that members sell 2000 views for $5 on eBay and Fiverr and still turn a profit. As countless “buy YouTube views” sites testify, the views are by real people, mostly in the US. Not the sort of people who actually watch the videos, much less pay for music, but they tend to leave that bit out.

If $5 is too rich for your blood, you can earn credits by downloading one of their free viewers and letting it “watch” videos for you in the background.

If you don’t have any videos of your own to promote, you can sell your credits back to Vagex directly. The current exchange rate is 26,730 credits for $1. That doesn’t cover the electricity cost of generating those credits, but clearly people are willing to do it, or the exchange rate would be more favorable.

Since the videos aren't actually watched, the views themselves won’t generate new fans, but…

Could Vagex still be useful as part of a larger promotional campaign?

Their FAQ lists these benefits:

Greater perception of popularity
Your video will show up as suggested/related more often
Higher search rankings on Google and YouTube
In search results, people tend to choose videos with more views

Sounds reasonable to me, but does it actually work?

To find out, I paid $30 to allocate 100,000 credits to a new video, immediately after uploading it to YouTube.

For the purposes of this experiment, I left the view length at 30 seconds, selected 100 likes, and left the other options unchecked (subscribers, favorites, comments).

I also announced the video on Twitter and via a $30 Promoted Post on Facebook. Despite the latter reaching 15,540 people, it only generated 71 plays on Facebook.

I could’ve taken the promotion further with an email blast and multiple announcements on multiple networks, but I didn’t want to draw attention to the phony view count. After nearly a month, I’ve still got credits left, but enough data to draw useful conclusions.

84,438 credits generated 21,545 views, minus whatever legitimate views occurred. The video averaged 900 views per day:

In other words, it cost me 4 credits ($0.0012) per view. That’s 862 views for $1! That sounds like a lot, but Vagex explains in their FAQ that it typically costs 3-4 credits per view, so my results are typical.

What they don’t explain is why multiple credits are required to generate a single view. Maybe YouTube identifies and compensates for Vagex-generated traffic.

How many comments did those 21,545 views generate? Not a single one! Nor did the needle move on any other metric that I can track.

Viewer retention was dismal. Nobody made it past the first minute? One would hope that the fans watching on Facebook did, but their data is lost in a sea of fake views.

Which brings up another important point: Vagex hoses YouTube’s analytics, which could otherwise help you target further marketing efforts.

Conclusion: Vagex didn’t enhance my promotion at all, beyond the unmeasurable benefits of a higher view count.

To truly go viral, a video requires:

higher retention times
high quality backlinks
likes, favorites, subscriptions
comments from strong accounts

The video itself doesn't have the necessary ingredients to go viral anyway, but it serves as a nice backdrop for the remix, while reinforcing the lyric.

You may argue that my particular formula (30 second views, 100 likes, no subscribers/favorites/comments) is to blame, and you may be right! I’m sure there are more effective combinations. Maybe if I had selected 300 second plays at 10 credits a pop, I would’ve dominated YouTube and won a Grammy.

As an epilogue, I just allocated 5 comments to the video in my Vagex control panel, so the page wouldn't look so desolate. Instead of 5, I got 42 comments within the hour! Most were generic and spammy, and in no way applied to my video. Like all things Vagex, commenting appears to be completely automated.

Where do you stand? Is Vagex a deadly sin or a necessary evil? Are you going to try it? Would you admit it if you did? Let us know in the comments!

Get What You Need, To Get What You Want.

2014-02-09T09:23:00.001-08:00

[Editor’s note: The following article contains excerpts from a post by Chris Muhammad, The Chief Editor of Hammer Magazine which he delivered via social media, on January 26, 2014 at 2:53pm. To get this message in print or digital publication please visit www.hammermag.com and order or subscribe. and if you would like to be a guest writer, we invite you to simply contact us on our site, and just Say "I want to contribute my words" and tell us about you and how to contact you.]

Chris Muhammad,
Chief Editor of Hammer Magazine

Greetings,

May The Peace of Allah (God) be your comfort. As the Chief Editor of our very comprehensive publication, www.hammermag.com, We just want to share some views we have. Although, I am the Chief Editor of our publication. I really do not like titles. Simply, I am your brother and a brother to those who seek love peace and happiness and I am not here to make a reputation of myself with the work I am permitted to do. For surely If Allah did not raise The Most Honorable Elijah Muhammad to deliver the TRUTH to us, and If The Honorable Minister Louis Farrakhan did not stand up to remind us of that TRUTH. We nor I would have nothing to say or have to discuss.

These a merely some thoughts I have come across, on a subject that really woke me up. I am sharing it with you in my hope to help wake you up. We are certainly living in The TIME, of judgement. Not only Allah's Time of Judgement. But of our own time to make the right judgements for ourselves. Judgement means our ability to make good decisions about what should be done and must be done. We are actual living in a day and The TIME that not only is Allah (God) making his own judgement calls. We too must make some judgement calls for ourselves, family and community.

Now, we have all done this before, we have made a decision that we regretted or wished we could take back. Making judgments is a part of everyday life, as we often come to conclusions about people we see before us or even meet . The decisions we make can have a drastic impact on our lives, opportunities and personal perceptions, but if we have a good strategy when making decisions then we can make better judgments along our way.

Instructions

Listen to what is being said. One of the most important processes of making a judgment in a relationship for example, is to listen to what the other person is saying to you. This requires you to have an open mind that is not predetermined, but rather, full of attentiveness that is both focused and sincere.
Ask probing questions. Open-ended questions that leave your counterpart with the option to expand on their answer will provide more information in order for you to make your judgment. Ask questions that require a 'yes' or 'no' should will lead to clarify a specific point in your explanation.
Weigh the evidence. Whether your judgment is on how you initially think or feel when we meet someone or on a decision that is difficult and has to be toiled over, you should always consider the provided evidence. Weighing evidence should be an objective practice that allows us to look at the actual facts and come to conclusive results before making a decision.
Check yourself first. Our personality and attitude can sometimes get in the way while making judgments when we only focus on what we want to know,hear, or see. This will cause us to find evidence that supports what we want or believe instead of what really may be happening. When making a judgment, take the time to ensure that we are checking our attitude and personality at the door before making our choice.
Communicate our final decision effectively. After we have made our judgment, we must make sure that the way we convey it is in line and in accord with The TRUTH and THE TIME. Appropriate and effective communication, if there is a argument for instance, can help dissolve anger that may result from a realistic decision we may come to. We must use the appropriate tone of voice and tempo when talking about people or a situation. This can be an effective tool to use on others when they are listening and deciding to accept or reject our judgments.

These are very simple steps we can take to help us "Get what we need, to get what we want." Every day we will find ourselves in a situation in which we must do something in order to live or succeed or be happy. You do want to live correct? You do want to be happy correct? You do want to succeed correct? Then that means we must make a judgement call. We must acquire and learn the ability to see and understand people, things, or situations clearly and intelligently.

Ask yourself, what do you want? A want is our own to desire or wish for (something). The Most Honorable Elijah Muhammad stated, " GOOD HOMES are now waiting for you and me who will submit to the Will of our God, who came in the Person of Master Fard Muhammad, to whom Praise is due forever."

Do you need a Good Home? Do you want a Good Home? Or do you want to keep paying rent to some slum lord or housing project? Look at where we live. Violence everywhere. In the home outside the home. All types of infestations are all over this nation and other nations. Do you want a Good Home? Then it is TIME to make a judgement call for us, to get what we want. All praise is due to Allah. Listen, If we want a Good Home. What is it that we need to do? What do we need to learn? What do we need to know?

If a Good home is waiting on you and us. How long will we keep it waiting? How long will we refuse to get what we need to know to get what we really want? Dear family, I am just sharing with you some thoughts that hopefully will help ignite something in us to help us out of our conditions. If it please Allah (God) I hope to revisit this subject more with you. Please leave your comments and forgive me if I have said anything wrong. And help us be even more correct. May Allah (God) be bless with this article in spite of what others may think or do. For surely with out him we can do nothing.

Please, visit www.economicblueprint.org to find out about what we can do to change our future with just nickels and dimes? And please visit www.hammermag.com and support the great work that goes into that publication. Thank you to all of our supporters. And thank you to all of those who wished me well during my year long battle to overcome what I have suffered from an accident at my former job. I am doing ok. And getting stronger.

Big Daddy Kane, Twista & Trina To Be Honored At All Star Music Experience

2014-02-06T08:59:00.001-08:00

(Hammer Magazine SKYNews TEAM) MP3Waxx.com and VirDiKO.com’s “All Star Music Experience” will be a 3-day event featuring some of the biggest names in Hip Hop. Big Daddy Kane, Twista, and Trina are set to receive Lifetime Achievement Awards during the festivities. There will also be live performances and several panel discussions featuring top named producers and DJs.

Some of the panelists include Drumma Boy, Erick Sermon, Young Chop, Luney Tunez, Play-N-Skillz, Kid Capri, Bigga Rankin, DJ Demp, DJ Krunch One, and DJ Mars. Radio personalities confirmed to attend include K Foxx, SiriusXM’s Nina 9, K104′s DJ Bay Bay, Q93′s Wild Wayne, and Foxie 105′s DJ OO Kee. Representatives from Atlantic, Def Jam, Columbia, Universal/Republic, and RCA Records will be on hand as well.

NBA Hall of Famer Gary Payton, Indiana Pacer Paul George, and San Antonio Spurs player Danny Green will be present at the “Official All-Star Players Ball”. Big Daddy Kane will also be performing at the party.

The All Star Music Experience is open to major label and independent artists, producers, songwriters, and executives. The event will take place during NBA All-Star Weekend (February 14th-16th) at New Orleans’ Federal Ballroom in The Security Center.

For more information visit
www.allstarmusicexperience.com or follow the All Star Music Experience on Twitter @allstarame.

Steve Stoute Talks Jay-Z, Nas, & Hip-Hop Culture

2014-02-05T21:50:00.001-08:00

Hip-Hop Mogul Steve Stoute

February 5 2014| Hammer Magazine Research Team

Left of Black is a weekly webcast hosted by Duke University Professor Mark Anthony Neal and produced by the John Hope Franklin Center of International and Interdisciplinary Studies at Duke University.

In this video, Mark Anthony Neal talks with Steve Stoute about hip hop culture, the tanning of America, and advertising. The Hip-Hop Mogul Steve Stoute spoke on several topics. As the author of The Tanning of America, Stoute is speaking about Hip-Hop culture's influence, using Jay-Z's recent performance at Carnegie Hall as an example.

"Of all the things that took place, when Jay-Z sang 'Juicy' and just held the mic out into the crowd and they sang in unison...Wow!," said Stoute. "This is Carnegie Hall, this is Jay-Z, he gave it up to Biggie and the crowd went for it. I just thought that this is a tanning moment. It shows how far we've come as a society... Music played a part in it but it was more than that, everyone was culturally there. Everyone knew the words and mannerisms as if they'd all watched the music video together".

Hip-Hop has broken down countless racial and cultural barriers as well as stereotypes, which Stoute spoke on. "I think that every generation has its counter-culture stance, which becomes popular culture," he said. "I think coming out of the 60's it was Rock 'N Roll, and I think that Hip-Hop has said something to this millennial generation that was much different than generation X had."
Steve Stoute's The Tanning of America is available now. Watch the very insightful interview below and share your thoughts.

Got Spotify? Then Get More Promotions For Yourself With Us!

2014-02-03T21:55:00.001-08:00

Great News For Music Artist! Hammer Magazine has partnered with spotify.com to help get you and your music to millions of music lovers around the earth.

This is a very simple feature we have added to our site that all can comprehend. So don't wait! Log into hammermag.com and get on the platform to success. And as an added feature, even if you do not have the money right now, but you want to get started. All you need to do is go to the site select your package and choose the Bill me Later option using your paypal account. Once Payment is received, you will be contacted by our staff within 72 hours from receipt. They will welcome you to our great platform and provide instructions.

Think of it as a secure, instant and reusable credit line you can use at the checkout when you pay for our services with your own PayPal account and choose Bill Me Later.

A Black Woman Found Dead in her Home After 3 Years and No One Noticed? How Does This Happen? What can We do to stop it?

2014-02-03T21:32:00.000-08:00

Woman Lay Dead in Her Apartment for Three Years with the Television On?

February 3 2014| Posted by The Hammer Magazine Research Team

Joyce Carol Vincent

For three years her body lay in her apartment, all alone, with the television still on. She was surrounded by Christmas gifts—it appeared that she was still in the midst of wrapping them. But yet, this young lady lay dead without anyone noticing or caring about her whereabouts.

Joyce Carol Vincent was only 38 years old when she apparently passed away, and 41 years old when her remains were finally found laying on her living room sofa. Her body was so badly decomposed that the reason of death could not be determined. She was identified from dental records.

And yet no one checked on her for three whole years.

Her body was finally discovered after Building Officials invaded her home on a repossession order. The year was 2006 when they finally took possession of her place. Once they entered into the apartment, a pile of mail greeted them in the front entrance and the apartment was covered with spider webs from the ceiling to the floor.

After the Building Officials made the grisly discovery, many questions started to arise. Who was she? Why hadn't the electric and heating companies cut off her services? Why hadn't the neighbors smelled her decomposing body? And most importantly, where were her family and friends?

The news of this young, attractive young lady was widely

publicized in the British press and shocked many people who read about it.

Filmmaker Carol Morley read about Joyce in the news and became intrigued by her. They both had a lot of similarities—same age, both shared the name ‘Carol’, and both had a parent die when they were only eleven years of age. She produced a documentary film on the life of Joyce Vincent and the mystery surrounding her death and the many questions of her life. The film is entitled “Dreams of a life.”

In the film, “Friends of Joyce Carol Vincent,” lovingly spoke about her life and her untimely death. It baffled them that Joyce was found dead. Her family declined to participate in the documentary, although they desperately tried to reach out to Joyce a year before she died. It’s been reported that they’d hired a private investigator to look for her without any luck.

Joyce Carol Vincent was born in 1965 in West London, UK. Her parents were from the Caribbean Island of Grenada—she was the youngest of five girls.

Although she had a limited education, she managed to hold down important jobs and made great money. She was known to be an impeccable dresser and was “very well spoken.” Her petite frame and quiet demeanor, along with her stunning looks drove men wild.

In her last days, it was suspected that Joyce may have worked as a cleaning lady. She also spent time in a domestic violence shelter as reports state she was trying to escape an abusive boyfriend.

She moved into a “flat” that was set up by the domestic violence organization with subsidized housing paying a portion of her rent. Unfortunately, the apartment was located in a seedy area where drug addicts roamed and trash bins overflowed causing a ratchet smell throughout the complex—which could explain how the smell of her decomposing body went unnoticed.

Her mail was dropped directly in a slot through her front door which explains why no one noticed the pile up; and the noise from her television was masked by the often noisy apartment complex she resided in.

Anyone who hears Joyce’s story is haunted by the same question: How does a person die without anybody noticing for three years?

Watch the video below to hear Dr. Boyce Watkins and S. Tia Brown discuss this case. It was determined that the woman was likely depressed and in an abusive relationship. S. Tia Brown, a licensed therapist, talks about how this could have played a role in the woman’s fate.

Please Share Your Thoughts

Rosa Ingram, Teen Sons Sentenced To Electric Chair On This Day In 1948

2014-02-03T14:48:00.002-08:00

February 3, 2014| Hammer Magazine Research Team

On this day in 1948 Rosa Lee Ingram, a sharecropper and widowed Mother of four boys, was the center of one of the most-explosive capital punishment cases in history. On this day in 1948 in a one-day trial, Ingram and two of her teenage boys were sentenced to die by electric chair, after an altercation with a White landowner in the state of Georgia.

Wallace Ingram (from left) stands with Rosa Lee Ingram, Samuel Ingram and Clayton R. Yates.

On November 4, 1947, the landowner reportedly confronted Ingram and three of her sons over livestock entering his land near the small town of Ellaville. John Stratford was armed with a shotgun and pocket knife when he went to have his word with Ingram. Three of Ingram’s boys overheard their mother yelling then rushed over to her armed with farm instruments.
Later, the 64-year-old man was found dead by way of blows to the head
according to the investigation.”

In several accounts and most notably in author Janus Adams‘ “Sister Days: 365 Inspired Moments in African-American Women’s History,” it was said that Stratford struck Ingram in the head with the butt of his rifle after threatening to shoot her mules that allegedly invaded his cornfield. Other historical accounts state that according to later testimony, though, Stratford threatened Ingram with sexual assault before striking her.

Either way, Ingram and her sons, Wallace, 16, and Sammy, 14, were all convicted by an all-White jury to death; Charles, 17, was at the scene but not charged due to lack of evidence.

Although there was an investigation at the scene of the murder, it has been suggested that many who responded to the incident were not officially mandated to do so. As a result, civil rights activists from NAACP branches around the nation leaped in to action to assist Ingram and her boys.

Court-appointed White lawyer S. Hawkins Dykes was aided by the the Civil Rights Congress (CRC) and their fund-raising efforts. Although this move caused some tension with the NAACP, Ingram and her sons were able to get an appeal and their sentences were reduced to life in prison.

National Committee to Free the Ingram Family, led by Mary Church Terrell, was instrumental in continuing to fight on behalf of the Ingram family and worked alongside the CRC and NAACP to ensure their freedom. Working across class and color lines, the case was a rallying cry for women activists and attracted the attention of the media in the North.

These organizations worked tirelessly to keep Ingram’s case alive in the minds of the public, even appealing to President Harry Truman to intervene at one point.

Finally in 1959, the Ingrams were granted parole and released.

The case placed a highlight on the racist and divisive Jim Crow laws of the South and also galvanized African-American women to participate in civil rights activism.

Ms. Ingram lived in Atlanta from the time of her release in prison until her passing in 1980.