Fashawn ft. Blu – “Samsonite Man”

Saw this vid the other day but The Hundreds did the store more justice with their lens.

We get back in the whip and careen around the ‘hood.  It’s like being in a parade float with the grand marshal.  Cars screech to a halt, grinning heads popping out of windows, dudes running down the sidewalk, girls turning.  Nipsey’s got one hand on the wheel and the other flashing fingers in the air, they love him out here.  It’s only a matter of time before the rest of the world feels the same. (Read/See More)

It’s cool to see Nipsey’s store re-opened, kind of surreal to watch the intersection of Crenshaw and Slauson, so iconic in it’s own right, evolve into a nationally recognized landmark but I definitely see that falling in step with Nipsey’s rising star power.  

As for me? As much as I love Nip, I just can’t wear a Crenshaw anything. I’m from Inglewood, went to Westchester… that just goes against nature (although it didn’t stop Game in his new video). Plus I won’t even roll down my windows at on Crenshaw/Slauson let alone park and get out of my car. Good luck to those adventurous few non-locals that do!

So you know Harris… Harris Publications? The people I work for? Them! They started a new magazine called Juicy recently. It’s debut issue, featuring Ms. (soon to be Mrs.) Lala Vasquez on the cover, is on stands this month and I’m oh so excited! I was there from the inception of this magazine… when it was just a twinkle in the Harris Publications’ eye and I’m so proud to see it finally develop into something tangible.

Go pick it up and when you do make sure you pay close attention to p. 42-43 (So vain I am! I’d have you read me all day if I could!)

But seriously, the magazine is awesome! And Paula T. Renfroe, Juicy Editor-in-Chief, is just all around amazing! She really put her heart and soul into this issue and it shows. I think black women (the target audience) are gonna eat it right up! I definitely salivated over page 26 (where Trey Songz was crowned this month’s “Juiciest”) but don’t tell anyone. See for yourself! Website coming soon.

Let me start off by saying this: I know zero, zilch, nada… about fashion.

When I get dressed in the morning my first thought is usually to find the most colorful and comfortable items that I can throw on without looking too much like a kaleidoscope. Seriously, half the time I’m dressed like a teenager (I get carded at Rated R movies) and the other half of the time, well, I’m in pajamas.

It’s bad. I even affectionately refer to my wardrobe (pretty much no matter which end of the closet I’m pulling from) as my “play clothes.”

But Seth Brundle? Now he takes fashion very seriously.

I’ve been following his blog for about a year now and he’s really shown me what fashion is all about- the art, the technique, the presentation, the craft. Things I never really paid much attention to.

He’s a true expert in all things fly and I’m not just saying that because he’s also one of the most amazing people I know in L.A.

On my last trip to SoCal about a month ago, I somehow got caught in front of the lens of Mr. Brundle’s camera. Yikes! Fortunately for me, it was for a fashion “do” and not a “don’t” …or maybe it was just because I was in the best picture he had of his rolled up sleeves (the topic of one of his latest posts that my pic was featured in). Either way, I felt privileged. (take a look)

Omega Red hosted a press junket down in Puerto Rico a couple of weeks ago. Here’s video footage of the PG portions of the trip…

I had an amazing time! Shouts to the Kablanati Gang who was out there with me: Shaheim Reid of MTV, Janee Bolden, Angela Yee of Shade 45, Maurice Garland, Mr. Mecca, Julia Beverly of Ozone magazine, Chuck Creekmur of AllHipHop.com and Brennan of AOL.

Caught this video on Arrogant Veggies. It reminded me of one of the reasons why I got into writing in the first place…

This kids’ collection is pretty impressive. Some of the issues of The Source he has are SUPER old… covers that I don’t even remember.

Confession: one of the first things I did when I got to XXL was to make sure I had a copy of each issue at my desk. I ended up with most but not all. Some issues are still really hard to get your hands on, just ask my interns who’ve had to go hunting many-a-times.

I pulled an extra issue of anything DMX, 2Pac, or West Coast related on the covers for my apartment.

I fly into Los Angeles tomorrow night at 10 p.m. Can’t wait to be home!

Courtesy Arrogant Veggies

If I had a dollar for every time someone asked me this… Here’s a great introduction from The Smoking Section:

Illmatic is one of those records that is a timeless masterpiece that remains a pivotal moment in Hip-Hop history. The reason that it extends further than that though, is the fact that it actually captures the essence of what it was like to live in New York City in the early ‘90s. The same way that Nas plays narrator for that period of time & geographic location, Fashawn does for the Central Valley of California in 2009 on his song “The Ecology.”

Over a haunting composition that Exile splices together with the precision only a master of the MPC could, the 20 year old Fresno resident spends nearly three minutes painting one of the most vivid and accurate pictures of my area that I have ever heard. [Read/Hear More]

Best line: “There is a reason he made that XXL cover.”  

More info from XXL

I’ve been to about six shows in the last couple of weeks but I’m just going to tell you about the best:

XXL Freshmen Show X Highline Ballroom

This was the best show of all and not just because it was the biggest or because I was involved with this one hands on. It was just an amazing show. Here’s my story with exclusive vids and pics on XXLMag.com. We missed one thing though, but I’m glad Bobby Hundreds captured it:

This really made me feel at home LOL! Check out the rest of his amazing pictures (in better quality) here.

J. Cole X S.O.B.’s

I dropped everything when I got last minute tickets to this show and I’m glad I did. There’s no denying how dope this kid is but something in the air that night made me feel like in addition to seeing a dope show, I was in for something memorable and I wasn’t disappointed. I wrote about it on XXLMag.com.

The comparison’s between him and Drake your new favorite rapper were undeniable, especially after this:

Cole might have it…

Nipsey Hu$$le X S.O.B.’s

It was weird to see so many crips banging that hard all the way out here in New York but when I heard the song he came out to, it made all the more sense: Noxmen and Bank Boyz ft. Nipsey Hu$$le “Trappa.”

Although Nipsey’s headlining set was short, he did bring out an all the way flamed up Juelz Santana. The New York Times reviewed the show, great article. Crazy to see Neighborhood Nip in the NY Times.

Which reminds me… at the XXL freshmen show I accidentally stumbled into a room backstage where a group of bloods from Jay Rock’s entourage were discussing gangs in New York… really interesting shit that I pretended not to hear and probably won’t share here but I will tell you that Nipsey’s candid interview with Complex mag is a must read. In it, he speaks candidly on rappers who bang:

“If you 35, 28, or 30 years old, and you decide you’re gonna pick up a rag and start bangin’, and you can look yourself in the mirror and you still feel like you’re a man? That’s cool, do your thing. My concern is the niggas that are really in the shit. I’m more focused on giving solutions and inspiration more than anything. But to answer your question, I feel like it’s fraudulent. Straight up. If you ain’t put on to this shit, you wasn’t courted on, you ain’t going to the back of the buildings to fight, your homies didn’t get put on, you not from a gang…” [Read More]

Wiz Khalifa X Irving Plaza

There’s nothing like the fan experience! For the Nipsey and J. Cole shows, I played the back of the room. Enjoyed the shows of course but I was in chill mode. For the XXL freshmen show I was working but at the Wiz show I acted like a fan. I brought along a friend of mine from L.A. who was visiting and who is a serious Khalifa-fanatic. We pushed our way to the front of the crowd, danced, recited all the words… and acted like college kids in general.

If you’ve never been, Khalifa’s high energy, coupled with his infectious lyrics makes for a very interactive show:

Why don’t you have this yet? (Download)
If you’ve been following Dom (from 25th Hour, to Future Sex/Drug Sounds, to Best After Bobby), you’ll find that From the Westside with Love is his best mixtape yet.

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