You Don't Write Freestyles!!!

I'm a Hip-Hop purist. I love this Community/Culture. I cheer for the strides that we make, and I boo when we fuck up. I firmly believe that there are four original Elements in Hip-Hop... Rap, DJ, Graffiti and Breakdance. Just because one Element of Hip-Hop is more prominent than another Element does not mean that the less exposed (exploited?) Element should be phased out.

You should've seen my big ol' Kool-Aid smile when I saw the B.E.T. 2009 Hip-Hop Awards live a few weeks ago. I was flipping through the channels trying to find something good to watch and I clicked on B.E.T. just to see if anyone, by chance, was having a Kanye/Hennessey moment. After all, there's been quite a few moments in these award shows already this year. As luck would have it, I ended up catching the tail-end of the first part of what soon became known as the 2009 B.E.T. Cipher.

It was beautiful! It was written and rehearsed in some cases, but still beautiful! I would post a clip of all three cipher sessions, but B.E.T. is currently passing out Cease and Desist demands across YouTube.

This was a good show. It made the entire awards show. It was almost like being back at The Hip-Hop Shop in '94 all over again.

Almost...

I don't mean to nitpick and all, but that beautiful cipher session would've been legendary if it was live onstage like the rest of the forgettable show.

There are no retakes in a real cipher. If you fuck up, so what? That's part of the game. All real Emcees stumble over lyrics every now and then. The trick is to recover and keep it moving. If you can do that you actually gain points by proving to the audience that some of your rhymes aren't rehashed, rehearsed and recited.

Freestyles aren't written...EVER! Freestyles are off the top of tha dome, as they say. There's nothing wrong with spitting rhymes that you wrote. Nothing at all. Go'head and spit that heat rock, hot 16, verse, dart, game, real talk, rap or whatever.

Just don't call it a freestyle.

J7M

J7: Sent To The Bench

I'm as prepared as I can possibly be for my upcoming "vacation" that starts Monday and is scheduled to last 30 days. Although I no longer drink, there was a time when I really, really did drink. My 13 year drinking career came to an end the day before Michael Jackson died but I'll be paying for it for quite sometime. It just so happens that I owe the great State of Michigan 30 days maximum in their Washtenaw County facilities, starting September 14th of this year. What can you do?

Jail itself doesn't really bother me as much as it should. It's what I'll miss out on while I'm cooling my heels in the joint that gets to me. I knew this day was coming back in early August. However, I completely forgot that I'd miss a whole month of football.

I'm gonna miss out on the premier of Jay Leno's new night time talk-show. I was really looking forward to that.

Not gonna be able to defend myself on the Facebook game Mafia Wars either. All of that real estate I bought and the money it earns is going to be left wide open to attacks.

ATL rapper, Killer Mike(!!!), has an excellent blog going on next week over at XXLmag.com in the blogger's section. I won't be there to comment on the posts. Dying to see who the next guest blogger is, lol! Plus, a month without being able to read the posts of my other favorite bloggers is really going to suck! Shout out to Ron Mexico, Byron Crawford, Tony Grands, Dallas Penn, Combat Jack, Phlip & Detroit's own Hexmurda over at AllHipHop.com.

Oh well, fuck it. This too shall pass. DVR will cover Jay Leno and new episodes of my show "First 48." And in due time I'll get caught up on the blog drops. The archives = blogger's DVR. DETOX and BISD probably ain't coming out next month either.

Like I said in an earlier post, I'm still in a good place right now. Still happy that I no longer drink and that my faith in my Higher Power is stronger than ever. Drinking just wasn't worth all of that grief. That shit will have you doing some crazy things... like yelling at the President of the United States on national (no, worldwide) television during a live press conference. Nothing but booze could've convince soon-to-be-ex-Rep., Joe Wilson, that that was a good ideal.

That shit will kill you. I've been to so many funerals of friends/family sharing that same common denominator... alcohol abuse. Whether it was due to health problems, auto accidents or homicide didn't matter.

That shit will break you!!! For the next 2 years or so, you won't have to ask me "What's in your wallet?" because you'll already know the answer... dust and tears.

Well, with that said, please don't drink if you know you have a problem. And if you do, please don't drive (like I did).

That shit will have you sitting on the bench...

J7

BK Whoppers >>> Crack?

This is a hilarious video! It seems like Burger King's Whopper burger has the same effect as crack cocaine in some hoods. What would happen if there was no more crack cocaine all of a sudden? Me, I wouldn't give a shit, but others? Don't get me wrong, I LOVE Whoppers, but there are just some things I wouldn't do if they instantly went AWOL. Anyway, enjoy this video below. NSFW (language, laughter).



J7

Why Would I Get Married?

Hmm... that's a good question. I'll have to do a pro/con/compare to see if I can answer that one.

PRO: My Parents are happily married, and so were my Grandparent - why break the chain? Marriage is the right thing to do. Children need both parents in the household. And... (help me out here)...

CON: Those two pictures up top. Hot grits. Human nature. Bobbit. That show "Cheaters", TMZ, wifey's girlfriends (armed with camera phones), wifey's parents (who'll never like you), your ex who'll never let go, HALF!!, bad ass stepkids who's favorite words are "you ain't my daddy"... Really, I could go on and on (no need to help me out here)...

I could be wrong, but I don't think marriage is in the cards for me. Like drugs, once you reach a certain age and you haven't tried it yet, you lose all curiousity in indulging. I look around today and I see the holy unions of my peers dropping like the Twin Towers. I heard that over 50% of marriages end in divorce, nowadays. Hell, they even have a reality show on TV about it (Divorce Court). But to keep it fair and balanced, I see a lot of beautiful marriages all around me, too. Healthy, faithful, respectful and strong unions where the man is truly best friends with the woman (my Parents).

I'm hoping that this isn't a new trend, but it's starting to look like the wifeys and the jump-offs are turning all Black Widow on the brothers. Dudes are waking up dead. To quote Combat Jack in one of his recent posts, "What part of the game is this?"

SMH...
J7

A Moment of Clarity...

Gotta say that I'm high as hell right now. Nope, not on drugs... I never touch the stuff. No booze either. I quit drinking weeks ago.

Ya boy Jamal is high on LIFE right now. I haven't been this high since the summer of 1995, right before I picked up my first drink. My thoughts are clearer. My appetite is better. The sun is shining brighter. My smile is bigger. The Lord's voice is louder. My gears are no longer stuck in neutral and, dammit, it's time to GO!!

Hope this moment of clarity lasts a lifetime.

What a buzz!
J7

I Miss The HIP HOP SHOP Too...

Man, I miss the HIP HOP SHOP!!! Every artist in Detroit does, too. I remember when me, my Brother Mike, and all the young emcees in my neighborhood would cram into my '94 Escort every Saturday afternoon and shoot down 7Mile. It was a few stores west of Greenfield. It was small but vibrant. Crowded but comfortable. It was the place to be!

I miss DJ Head and DJ Slimfast broadcasting the pure dope that the radio stations wouldn't touch. I miss playing my new shit for Thyme (Goon Squad) who was employed there. He always dug my beats. Lyrics? Eh...

I miss all of those dope emcees from all corners of the Nation who made the trip as well. Thinking back on it, it's kinda funny how I'm standing next to people like Obie Trice, Elzhi, Bizarre, Denaun and Eminem... and not knowing who the hell these cats were at the time (1994). I think I saw Royce up there too, not sure.

I really miss Deshawn "Proof" Holton. Me and Deshawn go waaaay back to 4th grade (1984). I remember first hearing about this dope emcee that everyone called "Proof" in the early '90s. So I made my first ever trip to the SHOP to check this cat out. When I got there, I saw Deshawn, who I hadn't seen in years at the time...

Jamal7Mile: *walks into the SHOP, sees Deshawn* "Deshawn!! What's up doe?! I ain't seen you in a minute!"

Deshawn: "Jamaaaaal, what up man?!" *dap, dap, etc.*

J7: "Say, have you ever heard of this rapper they called Proof? I heard he's up here a lot."

Deshawn: "I'm Proof."

J7: *smirks*... "Uh huh, riiiight... still cracking them jokes, man."

Deshawn: "Jamal... I AM Proof!!"

I looked at him and my jaw dropped. His voice was exactly the same as Proof's voice on that tape I had. Deshawn was Proof!! WOW!! I've been rollin' with him every chance I got after that. One day, Eminem "went to California with his CD and met Dr. Dre". Before that, Maurice Malone shut down the SHOP and moved to NYC. Proof followed him there, I'm told. I lost touch with Deshawn after that. I think the whole world knows what happens next...

Damn, I miss THE HIP HOP SHOP!!

One,
J7

First Blogpost EVAR!!

Wow! My first blogpost ever! How to start?...

Guess I should explain the title of my blogspot, eh? "You Damned Right I Farted!!" (or, for short, Y-Drif) pretty much explains my attitude towards self-expression.

* It'll grab your attention
* It's unapologetic... If I said it or did it, I'll own it and embrace it (incl. typo's, slang, cursing)
* It's fuckin' funny!!

There's no blueprint for this site. It is what it is, and it will become whatever it becomes. I intend to use this site as a therapeutic tool. When I want to vent, reflect, share, argue, crack jokes or just plain ol' hang out in the comments section... I'll be here.

Nope, I'm not making a bid to become the "mad blogger" either. For those who know me (and those who E-know me), you know I'm not really like that.

With that being said, I'd like to thank you all for accepting my invite, clicking my name, or whatever you did to get here. I say "be patient" as I work to make this site "more me." Again, there is no blueprint, but I don't want to create a rambling mess either.

Stay tuned...

Jamal7Mile