Hopelessly Sarcastic

Anthony Valadez Mix

noreply@blogger.com (ill Mami) — Fri, 24 Sep 2010 22:23:00 +0000

formspring.me

noreply@blogger.com (ill Mami) — Sun, 27 Dec 2009 15:46:00 +0000

Ask me anything http://formspring.me/illmami

not Michael...

noreply@blogger.com (ill Mami) — Sun, 28 Jun 2009 06:19:00 +0000

I'm still crying 2 1/2 days later, but I said all that I could muster up to say about it on SoulBounce.

Punchout!!!

noreply@blogger.com (ill Mami) — Sat, 14 Mar 2009 18:34:00 +0000

Mike Tyson Documentary? Sony Pictures Classics? Can. Not. Wait!

There's A War Going On [In]side.

noreply@blogger.com (ill Mami) — Sun, 08 Mar 2009 22:11:00 +0000

Just...please watch.

My job in mental illness has led me to meet alot of homeless people. They all have a story. All of them.

What I Do In My Spare Time

noreply@blogger.com (ill Mami) — Thu, 05 Mar 2009 06:04:00 +0000

The little time that I do have, that is.

Me & Idris screaming from Imani Walker on Vimeo.

:-D

Want To Know My Innermost Thoughts?

noreply@blogger.com (ill Mami) — Sun, 08 Feb 2009 04:18:00 +0000

Go here.

Trust Me

noreply@blogger.com (ill Mami) — Sun, 08 Feb 2009 04:12:00 +0000

Just do yourself a favor and do the following:

1) Go to this website .

2) Download all of the mixes.

3) Hook up your iPod.

4) Go to "Full Crate & FS Green"

5) Press play and place on repeat.

6) Savor.

I'm On Twitter Like Everyone Else These Days

noreply@blogger.com (ill Mami) — Tue, 03 Feb 2009 15:29:00 +0000

I have been on Twitter for a minute now, and I was surprised to find out that Twitter is a/k/a as "microblogging." Since I'm usually on Soulbounce or Twitter and not on here as much as I would like, I figured I'd let y'all know where I've been posting the past few months.

You can follow me here.

Me in '93

noreply@blogger.com (ill Mami) — Sun, 01 Feb 2009 01:24:00 +0000

Peep the School Daze poster on the bulletin board.

The Consumerization of Obama

noreply@blogger.com (ill Mami) — Fri, 16 Jan 2009 00:19:00 +0000

I don't know how I feel about this. I mean, I was pro-Obama in the home stretch of the campaign after really believing that there was no way that Obama was going to even be nominated. But now I feel a little uncomfortable with all these high-end designers creating wares that capitalize on such a historic point in this nation's and world's history. True, some of these items are hot and I do own a couple of Obama shirts my damn self, but I just don't want this to turn into the Bart Simpson T-shirt craze/fiasco of the early '90s. If you remember this (Black Bart tee = oh God no), then you'll understand the comparison. Check out some of the wares below.

You can get your Obama swag pimp on over here .

Please Go See This Movie

noreply@blogger.com (ill Mami) — Fri, 16 Jan 2009 00:07:00 +0000

I blogged about the dearth of Black Californians in the past. Statewide, we're something like 7% of the population. This being considered, the whole "Blame The Negroes For Passing of Prop 8" thing just doesn't make sense statistically-speaking, but I digress.

I just saw the trailer for this movie, Medicine For Melancholy, which besides being a dope movie title, is about a Black couple in San Francisco who bond after a one-night stand. While I have lived through this scenario on more that one occasion (sorry, Mom), the story seems beautiful and political all at the same time. Check it out below, and be sure to see it on January 30th.

Yes, that is the dude from The Daily Show.

Why Our Token Dolls Were Better Than Yours

noreply@blogger.com (ill Mami) — Mon, 12 Jan 2009 04:55:00 +0000

Just came across an item that cosmetics line Stila will be introducing a line of make-up that will focus on Barbie through the years . So imagine my surprise at seeing my beloved afroed, disco Barbie (a/k/a "Rashida" in my playroom) being honored with her very own make-up kit from Stila. I'll tell ya, I really have to thank Barack for this. Of all the Barbie-themed collaborations over the years, I have never seen anyone give it up to "Foxy Barbie." Just to prove my point, try to google "Foxy Barbie" and see what you come up with. Besides this recent item I mentioned above, you get NOTHING. Amongst my friends and associates, we all knew her for her glittery red pantsuit, fresh blown-out and curly 'fro and her red high-heels she used to step over the inferior dolls who were trying to get into Barbie Studio 54 to score some great coke. I can't fault her, though. 1980 was the beginning of the end for her life of partying, disco-filled nights, and perfectly-coiffed hair.

On the other side of the game was Strawberry Shortcake's token Black friend, Orange Blossom . I once had an absolute fit after losing mine on a NYC public bus and got it replaced with some raspberry-smelling doll that resembled Peppermint Patty, if you know what I mean. No dice and FAIL on my Mom. But I eventually got another one once we got home to Dallas. Ahhh, the good old days.

I Know, I Know

noreply@blogger.com (ill Mami) — Sat, 10 Jan 2009 03:49:00 +0000

I've been totally missing-in-action as of late, but trust me it's for a good reason. To put it simply, I am very happy. Happier than I've been in a very, very long time. My birthday was last week and lets' just say that it involved Faith Evans, tons of sushi, Vicodin, vodka, Negroes behaving badly, and a random Aaron Hall appearance. It lasted for the following 72 hours since New Year's Eve was the next day and now I'm in the midst of a 7-day fast if that let's you know how drunk I was.

I know I haven't really been on this blog too much and that's mainly because when I do get the chance to write it's over at SoulBounce.

So, if you want to know what I think of the dearth of Fashion in Soul Music today, read this.

And if you want to know what my guilty pleasure of last year was, click here.

Until...

Gay Is Not The New Black

noreply@blogger.com (ill Mami) — Thu, 11 Dec 2008 14:14:00 +0000

To be clear:

Gay is not the new Black.
Gay is not the "new" anything.
If being gay were the new Black, then Prop 8 wouldn't have pissed off Dan Savage (who I'm not fucking with anymore) so badly even after the misleading CNN exit poll. And this wouldn't have happened.
This shit is infuriating.
Please Advocate do not ever do this again.

This Is Just All Kinds of Wrong

noreply@blogger.com (ill Mami) — Fri, 21 Nov 2008 04:25:00 +0000

I'm calling DJ Brainchild out on this photo that he linked to his Twitter page.

Tee hee hee...

Get Busy Y'All

noreply@blogger.com (ill Mami) — Thu, 20 Nov 2008 06:22:00 +0000

This song pops up in my head at least once a week. Thank God for youtube and whoever uploaded this video.

"Huh? WHAT???"

Her Outfits Are Ridic

noreply@blogger.com (ill Mami) — Thu, 20 Nov 2008 03:55:00 +0000

I have been seeing some totally awesome outfits on Yahzarah who has been touring with Foreign Exchange recently. Surfing the web, I saw her rocking this outfit and was like OMG I have to steal this look. Well, not really steal since I am often straddling the line between professional and inappropriate at work. I too include lots of spandex in my wardrobe, animal prints in small doses, and overall try to look like Vanity/Apollonia/the waitress chick from Purple Rain with the blonde hair who cries at the end of "Purple Rain." That being said, my style can best be summed up as follows:

Tighter can be better
If it's too loose, use an elastic belt
Heels always
High-waist everything
Purple and fuschia forever
Metallics wherever and whenever.
When in doubt, everything ultimately matches anyway

With this in mind, Yahzarah has been killing it. Peep her technique:

Per my friend DJ Stylus, she enraptured the crowd with her gold lamé, stilts, and her bubble. I think that just about sums it up, no?

[Photos: Richard Louissant & Butta Baby]

What The Obama Win Meant To Me

noreply@blogger.com (ill Mami) — Wed, 19 Nov 2008 15:13:00 +0000

I realize that I could write a book on how that night made me feel. So, I'll let you hear my take on it as well as promote my friend Fave's great podcast. You can hear me rambling at 10:33 or so.

:-)

Gentrification Is Inevitable But Terribly Unfair

noreply@blogger.com (ill Mami) — Wed, 19 Nov 2008 14:33:00 +0000

This topic hits close to home. As a former Harlemite, I recall going to 125th Street to go to The Apollo with my girlfriends almost every Wednesday and Friday night. I remember going to the corner store to buy Now 'N' Laters, Italian ices, and Utz potato chips. The first snow that would always come every winter that for fifteen minutes seemed to make Harlem a beautful quiet ghost town, that is until the first footsteps would mar the snowy blanket on the sidewalks. But I also remember avoiding the thinly disguised weed spots with one bottle of shampoo, a box of laundry detergent, and faded items whose bad luck it was that they were placed in the window and would never be sold. The bums who would always sing right across the street from my house at 4 AM. I also remember getting Skittle-colored crack vial tops getting stuck in the treads of my Timberland boots, and scolding my little cousin whenever she would try to pick them up off the street.

I eventually left Harlem, and when I did, gentrification came with it. See, white folks began to realize something we Harlemites had always known: Three major subway train stops stopped in Harlem, as did the commuter train, Metro North, that many of them used to whisk them away to the tony suburbs of Connecticut and Westchester County. Adding to all of this two major freeways, one of which led to the Triboro bridge and meant 10 minutes to Laguardia Airport, and Harlem was ripe to be carved up by corporations like the lands of Africa once were.

Instead of tribal warfare caused by invisible boundaries placed there by foreigners, there existed for a while a jubilation that banking, Fed-Exing, organic food shopping, and going to the gym could all be done the way white folks had been able to do it. Mere blocks from your doorstep. We loved. I loved it. Despite the fact that my rent for a bedroom that was once the size of my room when I was a teenager was $1200 in a new brownstone with thin walls.

But now something very disheartening is taking place. I shouldn't say now because it's been happening all along. But it really makes you stop and think why the streets suddenly had to be cleaned up once the white folks began coming back there. As though we weren't good enough to protect. The last time I recall seeing a police presence in Harlem was in the beginning of David Dinkins' mayoral term when he stated that cops should walk the beat in the neighborhoods they work in. But only a Black mayor would do something like that.

New York City can be a beautiful and despicable place all at the same time. Likewise, I am torn to pieces about the "inevitable" gentrification going on in Harlem. To paraphrase a man in the video below, Harlem's gentrification is inevitable because you can't have people to whom you give most of your money away to not expect to have an influence in your communities. But do we want that influence to wind up being like this or this ? Good looking to Uptown Flavor for this video.

Song of The Year

noreply@blogger.com (ill Mami) — Wed, 19 Nov 2008 07:35:00 +0000

Courtesy of Butta from SoulBounce. I listen to this song at least once a day. Check this live version of Foreign Exchange's "Daykeeper" featuring the lovely Muhsinah. Did I mention my review of Leave It All Behind from SoulBounce is on FE's website? :-)

BTW, I have much to write on the state of affairs, i.e. Obama, and it's forthcoming. In the meantime, enjoy this.

Yo Voté

noreply@blogger.com (ill Mami) — Wed, 05 Nov 2008 00:11:00 +0000

I voted.

I have never been so excited to vote before in my entire life. I will be the first to admit that I have not voted in 8 years. It was so obvious from the get that Bush was going to win that i just did not feel like participating to only be let down. But this time around, I am looking forward to crying tears of joy when Obama is announced to be President-elect.

The first time I remember being involved in the voting process was when I was eight-years-old, and I went with my mother and grandmother to the polling place. Back then, Jesse Jackson was running, and it was clear that Black folks like him well enough, but that's not always enough. This time around, it took a biracial (who is for all intents a Black) man to unite people to the point that he has us all convinced that this is the change that we need. That we are the change that we need. That we can be involved in the election process and make a real difference. That means alot to someone like me. Someone who never thought I would never see this day be realized in my lifetime.

Today I voted for my Grandma and both my Grandpas who never likely imagined that this day would come so soon. Back in '84 my Grandma said that she would vote for Jesse but didn't think he would ever win. Now, twenty four years later, we not only voted for the first Black man to ever win the Democratic nomination for presidency, but we believe that he will win. And he will.

When the last of my grandparents died in a three month period two years ago, I felt like I was the walking dead. Numb emotionally, but maintaining just to maintain appearances. Not long after she died, I discovered I was pregnant with my son. It was meant for him to be here. It was in the cards that one person wold leave my life to have another one enter. I write all this to make the point that, while Obama's grandmother may have died yesterday and "gone home" as he put it, something else has been conceived. And that thing is the road that we will all be on come tomorrow when Obama is named our next president.

Thanks for indulging me.

I hope you voted, too, and that you feel as good as I do right now.

Funniest & Truest Thing I've Read All Week

noreply@blogger.com (ill Mami) — Sun, 02 Nov 2008 01:50:00 +0000

Regarding the "Black Agenda" that Obama may or may not put into place after he wins Tuesday's election, Thembi says:

I have a secret for you - there is no black agenda. The only thing black folks have done in consistently since 1865 is listen to music and make babies.

This Shit I Deal With

noreply@blogger.com (ill Mami) — Sat, 01 Nov 2008 19:31:00 +0000

On SoulBounce, I write about what I honestly feel in my gut. I rarely change my mind about something, but sometimes I do. My opinion on Common's Electric Circus was recently challenged by DJ Stylus, and it's nice to know that we can now see eye-to-eye regarding this matter of utmost importance ;-)

I bring this up because there are occasions when I have deal with a commenter, let's call them "Bossipers." These are people who are used to leaving comments on any multitude of Hip Hop websites, most of them are young who are used to just saying shit for the sake of saying something stupid and hurtful. You have no idea how assholey people can become when they can hide behind the cloak of invisibility that being a commenter on a website can afford. I actually take time to think about my position in an argument before I start taping away on my laptop.

In any case, I think I dealt with this person rather nicely, but I'm rethinking my choice of words. I think the correct term is a "mark-ass trick."

WTF Does 'Post-Racial' Mean?

noreply@blogger.com (ill Mami) — Sat, 01 Nov 2008 19:04:00 +0000

And I'm saying this in the most sarcastic way possible. This word has been thrown around alot lately, and it's being done mainly by people who have no business using it, political pundits for example, or by this critic who used it to describe his anger with D.L. Hughley's new CNN show:

When [Hughley] brought out Donnell Rawlings to play ‘Freddie Mack [sic],’ I had to check my watch: never have I seen a program jump the shark so quickly,” Izrael says of the skit. “This is someone’s white hipster doofus’ idea of post-racial humor in the New America: Chappelle Lite. The good folks at CNN think that any black person talking loud must be funny. They are mistaken.

Good point, but let's examine why this is just wrong to even say.

Did you all know a Black man was recently dragged to death last month in Texas 200 miles from where Jasper Byrd was dragged to his death 10 years ago? You didn't? Read this.

And herein lies the problem. This country will never be post-racial. To even utter or write this word and believe it to be a truth in "New America" is tantamount to national blasphemy. Why? Because this country was built on the belief that white men could get ahead by using others at their disposal with no regard to them as actual human beings brought into this world just as they were. Only in this country could a person, a white woman, be afforded so much opportunity simply because she is cute. Not because she is smart. This is much different than batting your eyelashes at the doorman to get into the hot new club as most of us ladies will admit that we have done on more than one occasion.

What this country may be if anything is "post-white," an America transformed by the symbolic removal of whiteness as the country's explicit or implicit historic and majority identity. That is something I can agree with. Sort of. I mean, in order to be post-white, we would need to stop engaging in colorism in our own communities. And I'm not just talking about Blacks. I'm talking about any community where lighter is always better, whether it be Latino, Caribbean, Indian, Chinese, whatever.

I guess when those women from West Africa stop bleaching their skin because lighter is better and somehow inextricably tied to being of a higher class so that their lighter, bleached faces match the color of their darker necks, can we talk about "post-racial." Because that will mean that they take pride in one of their own (Obama) to the point that they stop trying to look like the dominant, purveying stereotype of what beauty is. Or maybe when people stop assuming that my father's son is white because he is so lighter complexion-wise than me.

Until that time comes, I don't want to hear anyone to say anything about post-racial. Seriously.