...in a rhyme. In his new song That's Life, Killer Mike takes shots at Oprah, Bill Cosby and many others as he drops a hard-hitting commentary about how the black elite have abandoned the black community and some of the unspokens truths of "the ghetto lifestyle".
Its an interesting song. Who's heard it?

no, I like his stuff though.


I tink Oprah is criticizing certain aspects of hip hop culture--not black culture. I would imagine she's done more towards the advancement of the "Black community" than many members in the hip hop community.

Sounds like Killer Mike is looking for some attention. Why would anyone with money want to stay in the Ghetto? Have you been there lately? Oprah is one person and she has done more than enough to help others less fortunate. She can't save the world by herself. All this whining that the black community does is beyond tired. It's pathetic actually. How about Killer Mike address the fact that Black fathers are damn near extinct. Pop out these babies and abandon them. The infrastructure of the black family is destroyed because there are a lot of sorry black men who refuse to take care of there God Damn kids. Raise them and cater to them. Quit blaming Slavery, White people and Oprah Fucking Winfrey. She does what she can. FUCK KILLER MIKE!

legendofnothing said:

Nice rant. You obviously didn't listen to the song, though.

hmmmm....I'll listen to the song but I think its interesting how we define that black elite and who we criticize....russell, diddy and even fiddy don't live in the hood anymore.

Also...the black elite COULDN'T live anywhere but the black neighborhoods.


I WILL listen though.


Its becoming excuse ridden and a lot of scapegoating though...


black ppl seem to BLAME black ppl for being successful.

Rhondab said:

yup



or hating on them...

Killer Mike's name says it all.
Who would voluntarily live in the hood? Points or no points made on a danm rap song?

BlaqueKnight said:

True, but I'm not going to hate on anybody for leaving a crime-infested neighborhood.Why stay if you're worried about the safety of your kids? Something has to be done about these animals who prey on their own...who would shoot you for looking at them the wrong way.

uPtoWnNY said:

No offense, but why do you think there's so much crime in the hood aside from the drug infestation? Lack of leadership, perhaps? Its not the sole reason but its one of the factors. Being broke is one thing but being broke and having no one to consult or speak for you is another. The level of desperation rises. In the past, black leaders were much more hands-on than they are now.

BlaqueKnight said:[quote]

uPtoWnNY said:

But gangsta rap came along and began to glorify all that was negative going on in the hood and people stopped listening to these black leaders so they left. They got tired and went somewhere else. Black kids didn't see any point in staying in school and getting a job and trying to get a family when they're watching these rappers and sport stars get all this money for holding a mike and pushing a ball up and down a court, mansions and scantily clad women throwing themselves at them. What was so funny when it first began, rappers said that they were only letting people know what was going on in the hood. Hello - that's what the 60s civil rights movement did. Black pride in the 70s and Good Times. The only numnuts that didn't know what happened in the ghetto were foreignors and white people who didn't care one way or the other. There has always been violence in the hood that is true, but not at the level it is now where people are just shooting and killing each other when you got dumb ass rappers shooting and killing each other. You don't need a black leader to go there and say "hey that's wrong." No one's coming to the hood. The hood is engulfing every level of our society now. Now you have all the other races wearing pants off their asses, flashing gang signs and talking ebonics so much that with my eyes closed I believe I'm around black people. What type of difference is Oprah gonna make letting rappers on her show? What can they say that's gonna stop the continuing breakdown of the black family? When Bill Cosby got up and had the guts to say what my mother and many other black people have been saying for years, he got blasted for it. How many black people have grown up with parents and grandparents that have said "stay your ass in school, get a job and take care of your family!" They are the true black leaders. What the heck black people need to look outside their own family to find?

Stop defending these guys and look at the truth of what's happening. These rappers don't give a shit, they're all about making money for them. There have been a few who have done some positive things in the community, but it gets outweighed by the bang bang and the bling bling of their next hit record and the big tittied and big assed viddie hoes. It's funny when Bill Cosby had his hit show which showed that there were successful black families out there doing it, black folks complained that it wasn't real. Damned if you do and damned if you don't.

Remember the old adage, if you want something done, you gotta do it yourself. Well there's the truth of it and when black folks get sick of the stealing, the shooting, the dropping kids here and there, stop chasing the almighty dollar and chase a positive way of life instead, they will definitely get it together.

LQ

So how often is it that Killer Mike goes to the hood and does something positive and uplifting while there.

Well i think the same can be said of really anyone who makes it big out of hard times. Jennifer Lopez still has a negative image in the Latino community despite all the money she has given, projects that she has built up and things like that. Oprah can viewed as someone who seems to be elite and withdrawn from the black community, but i could say that about alot of Black people ranging from Barry Bonds to Janet Jackson to Halle Berry. I really am in the middle on this subject because it almost seems that u have make an excuse for your success and at the same time make sure you give back to everyone or someone will view you as elite. I listened to Eric Dyson recently and usually i mostly agree with him 100%, but i just felt his Bill Cosby rant was a little off. Saying that Bill didnt give back to the community is a big accusation and not true, through most of his life Bill did give alot back, and Im sure Oprah has too, though she may seem to elite too. The thing i feel is the issue is the fact that both Bill and Oprah have made statements regarding certain forms of black culture and how certain things bring us down. True it is wrong to make BLANKET statements about any group, but i think to make a statement that Rap Music (that is promoted) mainly is negative towards women and alot of times violence is associated. Now u may say well society is violent so the artists are violent. OK so why arent the band members from AFI getting shot at, or All american Rejects, or why isnt Justin Timberlake carrying a gun and pointing it at someone. Sure alot of Rappers come from rough times and neighborhoods, then why arent they doing something to give back, where is Fifty Cent building a library, oh wait he's not, hes making violent video games, i mean where are those acts of giving back from the rappers who are getting paid big time. And we know for a fact that Oprah has given and built lots of educational things and so has Bill, it just seems that we feel they arent doing it for the right type of black people. As someone said the other day, "the biggest threat to Black people, are black people themselves" scary but not without truth
[Edited 8/6/06 11:36am]

Honestly though he makes a point but why not pin those accusations on alot of others, like Barry Bonds, Janet Jackson, Halle Berry, and Michael Jordan and his golf playing ass, cant get much more elite than that, how about take a shot at Lebron James or another "Popular" black athelete, i guess that wouldnt sit well with the youth that Killer Mike is trying to "sell" to and get respect from. What and when have those folks been in the "hood" so to speak, Michael Jordan has about as much as what oprah's got. Look im not sticking up for oprah, but just as they cant make a "Blanket" statement, if you are going to talk about "elite" black people then you gotta be fair and look at all. As far as being Detached, we are all detached, if you arent in a situation 24/7 than you are detached. I hate when people leave a part of their life for whatever reason and still say thats a part of them, Bull, when u leave, u leave, you are detached from it. I dontcare how much you think about it or how many times you visit you are still detached from it.
[Edited 8/6/06 12:09pm]
[Edited 8/6/06 12:12pm]
[Edited 8/6/06 12:13pm]

lastdecember said:

Actually he DID address it to all of the black elite. He got specific on Oprah and Cosby. The points he made about Martha Stewart were so dead on in addressing the hypocrisy of our society.
Ask HIM why he singled them out. I don't know. I didn't write the song.

I understand that part of it but it just seems that Oprah and Bill were pointed out because "Black youth" will look down upon them anyway, and he wouldnt call out someone who actually was popular with "youth" like a Lebron James or Allen Iverson or Barry Bonds because it would have a negative impact on himslef. Everyone always has a motive behind their words.

BlaqueKnight said:

I think that's the point that everyone here is arguing about. It's hard to absorb the fact that Killer Mike has a bit of a point, when he so harshly attacks two so highly respected and positive black ppl who only want to help. Both sides need a serious education on what's the hell is going on. Oprah and Bill may not be in the hood, but I'm sure Barack, Jesse, and Al agree wholeheartedly with what both of them said. It's time for change, but we don't all have to do it the same way. O and Bill get more attention than the political black leaders because the media gives it to them.

Yeah i have to agree with that too. I dont think there is a right answer, i think if you are in a position to do then you shouldnt be criticized for not doing things for everyone. Angelina Jolie does her work for another country does that make her an elitist because she doesnt give to "americans". I think we also must remember that "american" does not seperate us from the rest of the world. And i know for a fact that Bill and Oprah have done tons of things for other countries including Africa where the most black people are suffering. I know Killer Mike is trying to point something out and make a statement, but you have to look at whole picture and not just your own backyard

I don't live the in the ghetto, and the ghetto mos def DOESN'T live in me,,,not anymore. Thats my mentality and I guess its Oprah's mentality too. If that makes her a sellout,GOOD.

I can't knock her for what she's doing or believe in. Not every bona-fide black figure is a leader, and not every bona-fide black figure wants to be a follower either. Believe it or not, they are regular people(just like some drug dealers are regular people too).

If folks are thinking that Oprah isn't giving anything back to the black community, then its their fault and ignorance that got in the way for NOT searching or looking around enough.

You don't have to ANOUNCE everything you do regarding giving back to the people? Anyway, you must be in one fuuuuucked up state of mind when you look up to so-called "black leaders" to change your life like you're waiting for them to do something while you're not doing shit for yourself.

Bottom line is; they don't owe us JACK. And beside I'll take Oprah as my kids' role-model over Shit-Babbler Mike any day of the week, yes sir I do.

Negros never cease to amaze me, haaaaave mercy

Harlepolis said:

AMEN!

lastdecember said:

This whole argument is similar to what Jim Brown (former NFL running back) used on Michael Jordan for a majority of the 1990's.

He states that black athletes like MJ should be giving their money back to the black community and they should support black politicians. MJ supported a Republican in a congressional race in NC back in the 1990's. When asked why, MJ stated that "Repulicans where Nike's too". While the his response may seem a bit trite, it hints at where the black elite prefer to utilize their resources. Whatever may be in the best financial interests/frame of reference for them as a brand(Oprah is a walking company, same for MJ) is what will usually drive their decisions about community involvement.

Oprah doesn't have to bee seen in the slums of Atlanta, Chicago, or New York. Her money has gone to various institutions of education in those cities for over 20 years (Namely Spelman in ATL). Ditto for Bill Cosby and his work for the UNCF, which he has been part of for over 2 decades as well. They prefer not to brag about such things, but they are active in the community.

It is a "damned if I do, damned if I don't " situation for the Oprahs, Cosbys, and Jordans of the world. As correctly stated in Harlepolis's post, they don't owe us anything. They busted their asses to get where they are and while it may be easy to go after the high profile black elite, the hip-hop community needs to take a mirror to itself and see what it can do to remedy the situation.

Decades ago, black celebs lived with regular black people. Sure, a lot of that had to do with redlining and other pracitices that kept us out of the nicer homes.

But, it also meant that black celebs were accessible to regular black folks and more likely to get a helping hand for job opportunities.

I agree with the statement Harlepolis made about people not letting the ghetto live in them. The problem with so many of our celebs these days is that -- by the overwhelming majority isolating themselves from poorer blacks, they almost ensure that poorer blacks will live in ghettos.

The point of Killer Mike's song (oh my gosh. I'm about to defend Killer Mike... ) is about community. Drop-off, check-writing charity -- though still needed and important -- doesn't necessarily build community. It speaks more to the way rich whites tend to treat situations facing marginalized blacks. It's from a distance, separated by latex gloves.

It's not: "Hey, man, let's catch lunch tomorrow and talk about that business you want to get off the ground. I have the governor's ear, and might be able to help you line up some contracts..."

That's the way it used to be: familial, sincere.

I understand Oprah's audience and advertising support and all that. But, what's to stop Oprah from doing a series about establishing some Harpo community centers in the nation's poorest cities -- all during Sweeps week?

You see, it's not just about black celebs' successes. It's about how consistently those celebs use their platforms and spheres of influence in a direct, lasting, familial way.

BlaqueKnight said:

Well all i can say is that point can be made about anyone, i mean seriously is there anyone who has "made it" and stays exactly where they are. I mean does Pharrell chill out in the community, does Puffy, i mean it can be said that everyone turns their backs. My question is where is Killer Mike or anyone else on the problems in Africa, it seems Bono has more interest there than anyone.

BlaqueKnight said:

No knock on you, b/c I see your point. The underlying tone has traditionally been that the "elite" don't do enough for blacks, which is a misleading. Those voices are usually heard in various factions of the black community from time to time.

I agree with you to a point. The "elite" are essentially corporations and as with any corporation, they become further removed from their root of origin. They are surrounded by handlers, business folk, and sycophants that tell them where their time and effort is best utilized.

If Oprah and Bill and any future elite want to travel down that path (of being universally visible to the larger community on a whole)that's their business. I believe (IMO) that they view their financial contributions/success as being pervasive enough in the community on a whole to justify their "segregation" .

BlaqueKnight said:

But thats pretentious! The minute you're in a higher status than the next person, you're "segregated" from them no matter how "down" you think you are. And why the hell would you integrate with the black community(or any damn community) when you're giving back all you can give? What are you trying to prove? Its your own life, not the black community's lives. I don't buy that "down for my people" illusion, I don't need Oprah to be living next to me. If you want to give back, thats your call(whether you're sincere about it or not). They're only obliged to their own families, as far as "integration" concers.

And most importantly, they don't represent ALL black people regardless if they integrate with them or not.
[Edited 8/6/06 13:43pm]

ThreadBare said:

Ok so to really make this point lets take what happend in New Orleans, 90% of that was in Black Communities, i heard alot of protesting and finger pointing, but when i looked on the ground i saw Sean Penn, Harry Conninck, Harry Anderson and Anderson Cooper digging through water and mud, not Oprah not Bill not Killer Mike, Not Pharrell, Not Barry Bonds, who im sure all "wrote checks" for relief. So the main point is that U can live in the community and still not be a part of it and vice versa. And as it was said before since when did we have to have somthing done for us, get up and make your own future. I mean it kills me when i hear that kind of talk in america and then you look around the world and see what real suffering is about
[Edited 8/6/06 13:48pm]