106 & MLK Presents Drink My Bread

Its ya girl Khaki La'Diaz - here with Waka Rocka Flamin.  Terrance, well, Terrance couldnt be here today; he's getting vajazzled.

Anyway, im here with half of the nappyheaded sensation, NappyHeadedBros, Rocka to premiere the new video from their highly anticipated album Tales from the Bros: FatBitches, Shrimp Ramen and Abortionversaries. Rocka, its nice to have you here... looking all fly in that... in that... what is that?

Its Goochie, ya know. All Goochie erethang, all day, ere day- from the roota to that toota... but uhm real good- real good to be here.

Right, right...So, Rocka, tell us what we can expect from the new album.

Music good... I mean, good music real good. I do good music so you know?

Great??? Any collabos?

Nah, I mean music good cuz thats what im sposed to do so ya know i not need nobody on this joint but the bros which was good ya kno?

Yeah, I guess so. So, you didnt work with anyone but the bros...

Well, der was me, Lefleur... and yeah music real good tho. My other boy on this one jawn i got... uhm "Wished it tasteded like Ramen". Shit be like "Nahman... you lied when you said it tasted like Ra-man... ate da pussy like a wish sammich like braman... you straight tricked me bitch and im tired-man"

Word? Ok, ok... so tell me bout the first single "Drink My Bread". Its getting a lot of buzz in the streets.

I mean drinking bread cool. Nah, i mean, its good. Yea, drink my bread. I tell bitches to drink my bread because i drink... and well, ya know. Nah, i need a do over

We're live Rocka but its OK- lets go ahead and premiere your newest single "Drink My Bread".

Yeah, uh, dis our new song... and Im going hard in the mufuggin paint yaherdme? Drink My Bread... 106 &  MLK... oh Lets Do it.

Support Hip Hop and the Fight Against Illiteracy by Posting This On Your Blog.

EDIT: Hoodrat Barbie Doll = Ingenious Marketing?

Edit: 12/10.. this is the original post that I drafted but didn't post due to it being so long. Once I saw that my blog was being perceived differently than what I intended, I decided to just include the original blog. PS- Stacie Ann, I think I cleaned it up a little. What you think? ;)

Nicki Minaj... *sigh*

Internet and radio stations have been buzzing about a new female rapper from NY making a name for herself with Young Money. Nicki Minaj- known for calling herself a Barbie doll and emulating Lil Kim's infamous crotch exposed pose- can be heard on a few radio hits such as Five Star Chick and I Get Crazy. I've heard a few of her mixtape singles and I've been reading a lot about her lately but, in all honesty, I'm not feeling it or her. The beat is dope on I Get Crazy but pair that with her high-pitched cartoon-esque voice that would even make a child nauseous and there is little left to be desired.

Lyrically, I'm not impressed. Take away the beat and really listen to the words, you are almost instantly dumbed down and may be missing a few brain cells from her excessive use of remedial analogies. Still I Rise from one of her last mixtapes goes in on everyone that makes assumptions about her race and sexual orientation and compares her to Lil Kim yet, ironically, reminds me of the Lil Kim's Shut Up off of The Naked Truth album. As a matter of fact, a lot of the things she does remind me of Lil Kim (black Lil Kim and light Lil Kim) but this isn't about jacking swag, talent (or lack thereof), or music of Nicki Minaj but of the image that she is now presenting to mainstream audiences.

Nicki started out the epitome of what a lot of young urban girls in New York are. She had that "bout to go get a lollipop and 25cent juice from the bodega" look when she was grinding to get signed. Slowly but surely, she mutated herself into what Lil Kim was attempting to be with the extreme makeovers and, while it's actually working out for Nicki, I'm not sure if it's for the best. Most shunned Lil Kim when she went from her wide-nosed, dark hair, thick in the hips image to a blond-weaved, blue eyed, lighter version of her old self. With Nicki Minaj, women and young girls alike are actually embracing her new image. You see grown ass women walking around with blue and pink hair and bright ass eyeshadow calling themselves Barbies and 5 star chicks because Minaj is doing it. I cant even count how many times I have heard some hoodrat chick say "I just had an epiphany... I need to go to Tiffany's". Sad but true.

I see pictures of the old Minaj and the new one and I question "Who is the real Nicki?". Was this Nicki created to be marketed towards younger girls or was this a poor attempt to establish female presence in the rap game? Will calling yourself a Barbie, being sexually explicit and rocking leather corsets really make me want to listen to you? Nope- but, unfortunately, to some misguided little girl that could be the case and that's just sad.

Nicki started out with the imagery that a lot of young girls that aspire to be rappers could actually look up to. While her lyrics were still a bit raunchy and inappropriate for the younger generation, they were at least good enough to get her a record deal. So, why change? Is it ever okay to make your fans think that you can not compete in a male dominated industry unless you give crotch shots, call yourself a Barbie, and auto tune yourself out to the point that you to sound like a trannified version of Lil Wayne? At one time, Nicki represented female empowerment in a world that only men were allowed into. Now, with the help of Lil Wayne and Young Money, she has morphed into the classic and overly sexual "hoodrat" bitch amongst a group of male rappers. When I look at her, I don't see an original rapper. I see a clusterfuck of female stereotypes that were started a long time ago when "No Time" came out.

Sorry, Nicki, we don't need another Lil Kim or Foxy. We don't need another female rapper exposing young girls to the fantasy bullshit of Barbies with blond wigs and surgically enhanced asses. Yes, you got your record deal and people are now talking. Your new image- while a cheap imitation of what we've seen for years- is ingenious. You took something that has been done before and got folks to see you as an "original". However, how much was it worth? The female empowerment and legacy that the original female rappers Roxanne Shante, Queen Latifah, Salt N Pepa, Mc Lyte worked so hard for? Ok, I guess.

To be fair, I'll let her come out with an album before I dedicate a "Why are you breathing?" post to her.(shout out to Don for resurrecting that post)

Ready?

No, it's not. Try again Trey.

I swear on everything I own and love that I will gladly sell my soul to a midget to be with Trey Songz. Everything about this man just does it for me... his big pearly whites... his pristine hair cut... them roided up muscles he's now sporting... ere'thing. I've written about Trey (yeah, we on first name basis, taaaddaaa* ) a few times on my blog (check here and here) and y'all know how much I adore him as an artist, a singer, a lover...

Moving on... cuz this ain't even about what I'd do to him with 4 minutes, butter and leather straps (don't judge).

His new album Ready came out on Monday. I bought it on Tuesday, popped it in my cd player at work and was disappointed. Why? I don't know... but it just doesn't do it for me and I should've had a clue with that damn LOL :) song.

Damn, Trey... I waited how long for you to drop another Last Time or In the Middle and you hit with me "8043350051, LOL smiley face, LOL smiley face". No, Trey... Im not smiling and I'm not Lol'ing either. Aint nothing funny about that and when I call that number it goes to a damn voice message system. I checked.

The rest of the C.D is mediocre at best. On the fast songs, he sounds like he's trying too hard to have a Usher-yeah-club-banger song and the slower songs he, ironically, sounds like R. Kelly. Ready starts out slow with the Panty Droppa intro which gave me some hope for the rest of the album and built up the momentum with the other sexually induced lyrics of "Neighbors Know My Name" and "I Invented Sex".

Next, comes "I Need a Girl" and I immediately skip since I've heard it a million times on the radio and on comes "One Love" and I check the insert to see if this was written by Usher. I could probably listen to that song but... yeah... Next is "Does He Do It?" and I asked "Trey, did you do it? Did you really just ask me a million times if he does it?" SKIP and its get's worse with "Say Aah" and "LOL :)" . Just as I'm about to remove this and stomp on it with my flip flops... the CD changes pace again to the interlude "Ready to Make Luv" and I'm mellowed out by his falsetto and range. The "Ready to Make Luv" interlude is the perfect set up to "Jupiter Love", a track that Trey gives me the "damn i wanna fuck feeling" I've been waiting for since track "In the Middle". That song is my "In the Middle" part 2. Yes, Trey!

Next, up is "Be Where you Are" and the song starts out pretty nice and then I ended up giving the "chorus" the side eye. There's something about the melody that's really Kidz Boppish and I do just like that toy you used to put on your ankle... SKIP IT. "Successful" is next and Im still loving it- mainly because i like the flow, the melody and the beat, although simplistic, is sick. Trey's verse is a lovely addition to the constantly played radio track and I give him the thumbs up. Black Roses, comes on and I'm impressed by Trey's ability to rip this rock inspired track about a dying love that he compares to the death of roses. This is probably my favorite track on the whole album. It shows his growth and versatility as an artist and I like this Trey.

The end of the album is a rollercoaster ride of greatness and "what the fucks?". Like "Lost Love"- WTF? "Holla if ya Need Me"- although it sounds like a rip off of the Love in the Club remix- is a pretty dope song. Then one more stop on the rollercoaster ride with the Prince inspired track of "Yo Side of the Bed". Me no likey... not even a little bit.

I'd give the album a C+. Ready wasnt quite ready to hit the shelves. A better team of producers and writers may have done Trey some good. Enlisting the help of Kanye, The Dream or even Swizz Beats couldve been just what this album needed to pull the 100k weekly figures he was hoping for and take Trey to the next level that I think he was aiming for with Ready.

Of course, I love this man and will support him but I gotta call bullshit when I see bullshit and eh... ne'mind.