Friday, January 9, 2015

The Genius of the TV Show Empire


The executives at FOX NETWORK ran down the following check list before Premiering the New show "EMPIRE" tonight........ here's that check list...

1.) Black Men killing each other.... "check"
2.) Angry Black Woman going after a Black male "check"
3.) Educated, Successful Black Male with a White Woman "check"
4.) Display of Effeminized Black Males "check"
5.) Blacks committing crimes and going to prison "check"
6.) Two Bitter Black Women going after each other ....one being lightskin, the other brown skin.... "check"
7.) The Promotion of Ignorant ass Crack Baby Rap Music "check"

8.) Overweight Black Woman displaying her self hate by wearing a BLONDE WIG "check"

THIS SHOW IS GONNA BE A HIT !!!!! BRILLIANT

- Taken from John Tank Williams Facebook page

As a writer/author, I felt compelled to respond to the debate about Tank's sarcastic remark about the Fox Network show Empire that went on in the comment section

After viewing the comments in the thread, I’m gonna be impartial because I understand BOTH sides of the coin

Is Empire stereotypical? YES

Does the show exhibit what many consider the lowest, common behavior of Black people? YES

On the flip side, capitalism and media have no moral compass…they’re out to appease the bottom line; to make money…they’re not necessarily for the betterment of the people

Everything has an audience and fan base to satisfy whatever they crave

It just so happens that there’s NO balance when it comes to the representation of Blacks in mainstream America

You got shows and movies like Jackass where white folks act as if they lack common sense…

…but you also have movies that show whites in high regards whenever they make flicks about Egypt, the Bible, Science Fiction, etc.

The representation of whites is more diverse in that manner, and Black people don’t have the luxury to do whatever we want BECAUSE OF the lack of diversity

Boyz in the Hood is one of my favorite movies, and so is Boomerang, which has its share of drama as well as Black people placed in a professional setting



When I was growing up, I listened to NWA…and I also listened to Public Enemy to not only balance my listening enjoyment, but also because they were READILY AVAILABLE for public consumption

People usually eat what’s in front of them

Shows like Scandal, Empire, How to Get Away with Murder, etc. are very entertaining…

…and I don’t think those shows are necessarily the problem…on the surface, yes, but deep down, the issue is the lack of images that’ll show Black people in a different light to negate whatever people may feel is negative

If we want better, we gotta demand better and support the alternative, because it's more than entertainment when the world judges you based on the excess of a stereotype

I mean…

…do we really need Empire when we already have Power?

*shrugs*

On another note, it’s the parents and the so-called community’s job to teach the youth, and each other, the true history of where they came from BEYOND the Trans-Atlantic slave trade so anything what we may perceive as negative wouldn’t affect us

Maybe Black Americans should spark a YouTube revolution and produce our own shows and collectively blast them on social media like they do Empire, but then again, we live in an era where people are more reactive (talking and criticizing) than proactive (doing and supporting)

If you wanna see something other than slave movies, the hood, the helpless negro, shallow comedy, the hyper-sexed, etc, then show love to movies that are the opposite of what you dislike seeing in the mainstream



Hollywood is only giving you what you wanna see based on numbers

Don’t hate the player, hate the game

Anyway…

…the keyword in this discussion should be BALANCE

Aight…

…Carry on

Peace and Afro Grease

Nah'Sun the Great @ www.nahsunblaze.com


P.S.

A lot of people say Black people shouldn't bug out about how they're portrayed on TV and it's "just entertainment"...

...that might be true, but suggestive language is powerful

Why you think companies pay a lot of money to run ads during the Super Bowl?

Let's not forget that Cubans didn't like how they were portrayed in Scarface, Italians told Jersey Shore not to display the flag of Italy on the show, and Arabs were tired of Hollywood portraying them as terrorists in movies

Every nationality are aware of how society perceives them on the strength of how the media broadcast them to the world

Peace

Tuesday, January 6, 2015

Get the Fuck Off Your Phone!!!



Happy New Year, grasshoppers?

My New Years Eve was wack...went to some bullshit club in Harlem...won't say the name of the spot because it's not the club or the promoters fault


In fact, the atmosphere was great...

...the females were just hella corny




Ladies...

...get off the damn phone when you're @ the club...I don't understand that shit...for real, for real

What's the point of clubbin when you wanna play the wall and look cute, or sit down and look @ a screen all dang-on night?

The ONLY time I glance @ my phone is when:

A) I'm checking for messages to meet up with someone @ the spot

B) I'm taking pictures

Other than that, I didn't pay 20 bucks or better to eye fuck my phone



And another thing...

Some of the chicks @ the joint had boyfriends, some of them didn't wanna dance with dudes, some sat @ tables with screwfaces, and 
others only wanted dudes to buy them and their homegirls drinks

Ugh!

Hangin out with my dudes was the jewel of the night when midnight struck to bring in the New Year, but I wanted to dance with tenderonis as well

I mean...

...isn't THIS what the club is for?



That's why I hit up grown and sexy events where women wanna dance...35 and over jawns...the 60s and 70s babies know how to party

Real talk

I should've went to Avalon (formerly known as Tabu) in Long Island to two-step with the grown folks

That was my originally plan, but hey, you live and you learn

Aight, ya'll

I see you when I see you

Peace and Afro Grease

Nah'Sun the Great @ www.nahsunblaze.com