The Urban Feed

THE CORNER: 10 RESOLUTIONS FOR 2010

Ke’Andrea “Kiki” Ayers
Editor-In-Chief
The Urban Feed

As 2009 comes to a close I couldn’t help but to think about all the great memories of the past year. A lot occurred in entertainment as we lost the King of Pop and gained a historic moment with the Inauguration of our first Black President Barack Obama. For me personally, I had a lot of great things happen such as the launching of The Urban Feed Media Group. I’ve been blessed to work with such a wonderful team and to have a great, reliable and creative partner. Although there were many highlights, I would be lying to myself if I said that there weren’t any bad or unfortunate moments. Many people asked me what my new years resolution was and at first I struggled to find one. When I looked back on all those unfortunate moments I was able to find 10 new year resolutions; not just for myself but for the community as a whole. Below are 10 new years resolutions that I believe everyone should live by for the year 2010. Enjoy!

#1To start a campaign against men who wear skinny jeans: Just think of it like this, how would you feel if your little sister was crying because she went to the store and found out that they ran out of the jeans she wanted just to find out that you were the one that bought the last pair? Or what if you’re going on your first date with this girl you really like and you end up wearing the same jeans as her? Nobody wants that feeling.

#2Make a change in the dental hygiene community: It just seems like no matter where I go there is always someone with a tongue piercing…that has a dirty tongue. I really just have a hard time understanding the logic of that. I mean seriously, why show off a piercing that is surrounded by serious bacterial organisms. I’m not a physician but I know that can’t be healthy.

#3Start a Call to Action: Stop listening to Beyonce’s Ego. There is no point listening to a song like that when you have nothing to have a big ego about. If you must listen to the song then listen to it carefully “I talk like this cause I can back it up.” So please stop trying to put others down especially when you have no reason to. I recommend a serious dose of reality and some D.O.E- Death of the Ego.

#4Conduct a Workshop on pick up lines: There are many other ways I would recommend to approach someone without using a pick up line but if you can’t help yourself then please get creative. Pick up lines such as “aye yo girl can I get you pregnant?” or “Do you wash your pants in windex because I can see myself in them,” should never be said. No one responds to that and if they do then you should run because I guarantee it will result in itching, scratching, burning or an outbreak of some sort.

#5Hold and intervention for women who play backwards: To all women who are walking down the street with their man please don’t mean mug other women that he is looking at. If he is walking with you and looking at someone else then that is a personal problem between you and him. There is no need to get the other women involved.

#6Enroll in a course called think before you offer: To all my men. If you are in a five-seat car with seven of your homies and you see an attractive female walking down the street then maybe you should think before you offer them a ride. I mean where do you expect her to sit? Are you going to get out the car and put two of your friends in the trunk? No

#7Don’t publish your personal business: To all Facebook users, please stop putting all your personal information in your status. No one needs to know about your check being garnished or how your boyfriend cheated on you with your best friend. Some of you need to invest in a diary.

#8Stop using the word “no homo”: The word “no homo” is turning into a serious problem to the point where it has no context in the sentence it’s being used in. For example, “I want to have kids one day…no homo,” or “I bought my mom jewelry for her birthday…no homo.”

#9Be aware of your surroundings: As much as I hate to do this I have to go back to the men. Men please realize that there is a right and wrong time to hit on a female. If you are on the metro that might not be the best time to try and find your future girlfriend. No one wants to give you their number within the very short time they were forced to spend with you on the metro. This brings me to my next point. Many of you ask for phone numbers without asking for a name so I’m just curious to know that if someone was to give you their number then what would you save as in your phone? Yea, I don’t know either.

#10 Black Mothers please put an end to B.I.P: That’s right B.I.P is Beating In Public. It’s not that serious to beat your child in aisle 3 when you’re only two minutes away from checking out. Please just try and wait until you get home and out of the public eye. You’re (a.) Making black mothers everywhere look bad and (b.) scaring people that are outside of nationality.

Please do your part in making the world a better place by leaving the problems of resolutions #1-10 in 2009. Move on with all the great things that are to come in 2010 and suggest these resolutions to those that are in need of them.

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THE CORNER
Hip-Hop Has A Pulse

When looking at the concept of hip-hop and the importance it has on urban culture most of us think back to when hip-hop had “quality” artists all the way back from Afika Bambaataa, N.W.A and Run DMC, to Tupac Shakur and Notorious B.I.G. Now of days most people look at rap artists such a Gucci Mane and Soulja Boy and claim that hip-hop is dead. Although I don’t think hip-hop is at all what it use to be, I have to disagree when I hear that it’s dead. We’re so quick to claim that hip-hop is six feet under without looking at the whole picture.

I can understand the argument of hip-hop being dead. Artists that are lyrically talented remain underrated. People don’t appreciate or support artists like Common, Mos Def or Nas the way they do Gucci Mane. In December 2006, Rap Artist Nas released the studio album Hip Hop is Dead and in that point in hip-hop it was hard not to agree with him. Reality is that artist that rap about real stuff don’t sell. How can they when everything they’ve ever known to stay true to is sold off in exchange for a record deal? I think Def Jam Poetry artist Black Ice describes this best is his poem Or die.

Consumers of hip-hop pay more attention to investing in something they can dance to rather than lyrics, and with middle class White American teenagers being the number one consumers of hip hop this only makes sense. Why would they pay attention to lyrics that they can’t relate to? Now of days rap artists have to make music that sells. As the music industry continues to change so does the concept of music, including hip-hop. I think hip-hop is definitely alive but what we perceive to be hip-hop has changed.

People claim the future of hip hop is dead but on the other hand we have artists such as Jay Z who just had the number one album in the country with The Blueprint 3 and Lil Wayne who sold one million copies in his first week. Like anything else we have to be able to adapt to the changes. I remember growing up to artists like LL Cool J., Tupac, Biggie and Salt-N-Pepa so when I see my little brother listening to artists like Soulja Boy I see the change in the culture of hip-hop. I do admit hip-hop has gotten a little old, beat-up and abused over the years but through it all it still has a pulse.

Ke’Andrea “Kiki” Ayers
Editor-In-Chief
The Urban Feed

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This is anti ego! Death of I’m so involved, death of the attitude, death of the know it all. La, da, da, da- Hey, hey, hey-Goodbye!

At which point did us as young college students get so full of ourselves to the point where we not only build up our own ego, but where we try to knock our other hardworking peers down…Still thinking? Yea, I don’t know either.I find it funny that the people with the least experience are the ones with the biggest egos. This could be because they need to feel secure about themselves or simply because it gives them a sense of entitlement. Even in Beyonce’s song “Ego” she touches on the fact that she “talks like this” cause she “can back it up” and whether or not you love Beyonce you have to admit that she’s on her grind. Somewhere down the line we forgot we needed to start at the rags and work ourselves up to the riches.

Are we already at the point so young in our lives where we think we can judge people based on their ethnicity, age and how they look just because we’ve had a couple of internships? What did we really do at these internships to the extent where we’re so full of ourselves? Did we build an empire like Diddy or a dynasty like Jay Z? No, reality is that we made copies, did research or got coffee all while having the chance to work on major projects from time to time.

The Ego is taking over and getting out of control to a point where we don’t even realize. Just because we’ve had a few internships doesn’t mean we know everything. No one ever does, that’s why you don’t see successful “one man” businesses. The Ego is directing hundreds to a new career field called hateration where they can aspire to be nothing but professional haters. Yeah, try putting that on your resume and see how far you will get. Although, I can’t say I wouldn’t hire you for motivational purposes.

Any success you have should be acknowledged but not to the extent where you try to put other people down or act like you’re superior to them. Don’t get me wrong If somebody asks me how I’ve been I will tell them, but no one needs to hear about what you’ve done every two minutes especially in situations where it’s irrelevant. It’s possible to be successful and humble so if you think you know a lot, spread the knowledge because you are replaceable in any industry.

In the short time I’ve been at Howard University I’ve seen “The Ego” not only walking around the campus but walking around any place in the District of Columbia that allows you to be apart of an organization, committee or internship program. The way they flood the bathrooms, the hallways, the classrooms and even the Punchout really makes me wonder, “Is the Ego the next big epidemic we as college students will face since the plague?” I hope not. That’s why I’m calling to action D.O.E.-Death of the Ego.

So, before you get defensive or offended and ask yourself “is she talking about me?” the answer is NO. This is not directed to anyone personally but if you have to ask yourself then maybe you should consider some D.O.E. La , da, da, da-Hey, hey, hey-Goodbye!

Ke’Andrea “Kiki” Ayers
Editor-In-Chief
The Urban Feed

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