Get Yo Stevie On... "LolliPop Remix"

Say what you want about Ryan Leslie, but his musical ability is crazy. Check out this clip of his piano skills at work.

Chivalry is Dead!!

I wanna fight whoever raised some of the women born between 1983-1987. They really make this dating stuff for the birds. I'm trying to figure out how in the month of April I managed to get stood up, like a billion times.

In one week alone I invited a couple of girls over, nothing major planned but the first part of dating should be getting to know somebody. It just so happens that I knew both girls anyway so this was me really just trying to chill, but neither of them made it to my apt. Why? I have no idea cuz they DIDN'T CALL!! One girl even hit me up a few days later, apologized and asked if she could come by when she got off work. Since I'm not the type to hold grudges, I said come on through, but if you're thinkin she came, you would be wrong....and sidebar; she DIDN'T CALL!!

Then I come back to Detroit for a few days and a girl I'd been getting to know lives there so I thought this would be a good break from talking on the phone like we'd been doing for the past month. She's in school so I was open to her schedule. Well one day she asks me to come to her school and see her, even told me that she'd cancel plans with her friends if I came. I told her that wasn't necessary but she insisted that I come. I get up there and call her and she let me know she was in line at the club with her girls...WTF just happened?!?!? A couple of days later she said she wanted to go out with me. Within a few hours we went from going to the movies, to the club, and to see a comedy show all as options, and we finally settled on the latter. She asked me to get dressed because the show started in about an hour. Well I'm glad I sat in my draws watching basketball because she DIDN'T CALL!!

I'm officially about to cut my phone off because apparently calling to cancel or change plans is a thing of the past. The new hip thing to do is to be rude and inconsiderate, cuz that's how you get a man. For all the women that say there are no gentleman left, take a look in the mirror and ask yourself if you've been the most stand up woman you can be. One girl who stood me up three different times when she was supposed to drop by my apartment, told me I was overreacting and I didn't really care whether she came by or not. The girl who didn't make any time for me when I went to Detroit, told me she thought I was a cool guy but I had a bad attitude after she stood me up. What both of these girls don't know is I'm actually a great guy with a lot to offer, and I was really digging them, all of which they would've found out had they just CALLED!!

-Ant

What's New @ BET

BET recently announced their new line-up for Fall '08 and subsequent programming for 2009. I, for one, am happy and proud that the network for African-Americans will be introducing additional news programming ("Unreported" & "The Truth With Jeff Johnson") specifically targeted at their viewing demographic. Returning shows include original series' "Keyshia Cole: The Way It Is" & "Baldwin Hills", among others. Check out the full listing below.

From EURweb:


New Programming on BET J includes "Carmelo's Way," a reality show that follows Denver Nuggets forward Carmelo Anthony during a four month period; "Leading Men," about prominent African American men who have impacted American culture artistically, socially, and politically; and "Urban Cuisine," featuring chef Marcus Samuelsson showing viewers smart and healthy shopping, special dinners and low-fat, low-calorie meals.

The following is a detailed list of new programming to premiere on BET:
• THE BLACK PANTHER - From Marvel Comics, who brought the world Spider-Man, X-Men, the Fantastic Four and Iron Man, comes a primetime animated series featuring the first Black superhero. A wise and just African warrior king. A technologically advanced superhero with a proud past. BET presents THE BLACK PANTHER. PREMIERING Q1 2009
• BRUTHA - With family values at the top of the network's agenda, BET turns the spotlight on BRUTHA, an R&B group of siblings who learn just what it takes to navigate the treacherous terrain of the music industry -- and discover who they really are along the way. Hunger for stardom, loyalty to family and love for the craft all take center stage with BRUTHA. PREMIERING Q4 2008

• JUDGE KAREN - There's a refreshing new judge in town who's about to set it off. She's uncompromising, smart, and quick to cut through the clutter. JUDGE KAREN was born to hold court on BET, and she's taking no prisoners. PREMIERING Q4 2008

• THE BOOT - Narrated by MC Lyte, THE BOOT is a half-hour dating show filled with twists, turns and eliminations. The daily strip show begins with six sexy singles (for example, two girls and four guys). First, the girls meet with all four guys individually. The ladies discuss their personalities and eliminate two guys. The two remaining men and two women are then paired off and sent on dates. Halfway through their date, they swap. The girls collectively decide which of the two guys to eliminate, and then they send one guy packing. With two girls and one guy remaining, suddenly the power shifts. Now the guy has the chance to decide which one of the girls is right for him.

• 106 & GOSPEL - It's the flagship brand extension you've been clamoring for: 106 & GOSPEL, an all-new 90-minute weekly music event this growing genre so righteously deserves. In addition to the incredible performances for which the 106 brand is known, 106 & GOSPEL features a top 20 countdown of contemporary gospel videos, news segments with Tye Tribbett, church fashion and roof-raising youth choir battles.PREMIERING Q1 2009

• THE TRUTH WITH JEFF JOHNSON - Jeff Johnson takes his award-winning reporting to the talk show format with a fresh approach to news and pop culture hosted by the acclaimed correspondent. He addresses the issues facing Black America, the nation and the world as they happen, gathering comments and provoking thought with interviews and lively discussion. PREMIERING 2009

• UNREPORTED - The imbalance in journalistic coverage with respect to African Americans is handed a much-needed reality check with this new investigative series. UNREPORTED hits the bulls-eye by illuminating the plight of the missing and falsely accused in our communities and in so doing, brings our truth to light unlike any news program on television. PREMIERING 2009

-Mike

The Black Google???

I’ve been meaning to post on this for about a week, but I figured, even though it is late as hell, I would still get the word out there. IAC launched the first African-American focused search engine, RushmoreDrive, in early April. This unique site utilizes aggregators that specifically pull African American focused search criteria. Crazy, huh? In addition, RushmoreDrive has job listings and social community features. Take it for a test drive and let me know what you think!



-Mike

Goodbye Soul Train

So the Sooooooooul Train has come to a screeching halt? Pretty much.

Target Market News reports that the once iconic Black music dance and award shows are both officially a wrap. Funny thing is, the TV show ended in 2006 to no fan-fare and now the awards program is following suite. Honestly, I feel BET’s 106 & Park coupled with the BET Awards took Soul Train out the game, but you can’t deny Soul Train’s place in black history and contemporary prominence of urban music. I can honestly say I will miss flipping through the channels on a random Saturday afternoon and coming across the overzealous dancers and lip-synched performances. The end of an era indeed.

Read the full story at Target Market News

-Mike

5.4.08

In anticipation of the Glow In The Dark Atlanta tour date, here are some pics to express my uncontrollable excitement. LOL













-Mike

Girls, girls, girls...The Panera Experience

So Mike and I are sitting in Panera Bread working on some things. We'd been there for about three hours when a couple of girls walk in. Personally neither of them were my style, so I looked at them and got right back to business. We stayed for about another hour and a half before we'd finally wrapped things up. I'm walking out the door and a Panera employee is walking behind me. I held the door open for her, and as I turned to walk to the car, she stopped me and told me her girl wanted to talk to me. Her girl was one of the ladies that walked in at the beginning of the story. Kindly I told her, I didn't have time to talk because I had other obligations. I said tell your girl sorry, but she was in there for over an hour and didn't say anything to me.

What I wanted to tell her was that whole "my girl wants to talk to you," shit hasn't happened since I was in high school and she needed to step her swaggy up. But I'm not that rude, so I kept it polite. However after some careful thought, I realized it takes a certain confidence this day and age for a girl to make any sort of approach to a guy (even if it's kinda childish). This made me wonder why more women don't ever make a move to talk to a man. I really don't get it. A guy is more likely to remember the one girl that approaches him than the twenty girls that turn him down. Hell even if you aren't the best looking person on the planet, a little confidence goes a long way, and making the first move is the ultimate display of a woman who's secure with herself.

Girls are such hypocrites. One minute they're talking that "I.N.D.E.P.E.N.D.E.N.T." trash and then when you ask them why they don't approach dudes they tell you that they're traditional and old fashioned. I heard one girl on the radio say that she'd never approach a man, and that guys should make the first move because we're used to getting rejected. What the hell does that mean? Getting turned down is a hard part of life and though we may know how to bounce back, that doesn't mean we're immune to the humility that comes with it.

As lame as this girl in Panera Bread was for her tactics, she gets my respect for going after what she wanted. She might have been a little more successful had she come up to me directly, but the middle man approach could work for some guys. My point is, she went out of her way to let me know that she wanted to talk to me. She didn't wait on tradition to come to her, and she wasn't afraid of doing something that most girls won't do. It was refreshing to see someone be unorthodox and for that she gets applauded. If more girls went after the guy they wanted, they'd probably get the guy they wanted. Start being more assertive and stop being afraid that you're gonna get turned down. Plus I'm sure if you asked the girl at Panera Bread how she deals with rejection, she'll smile and kindly say that it's not that bad, and after a while, you'll get used to it.

-Ant

Wanna be on CNN?

A couple of weeks ago I wrote about CNN starting their new series, Black In America. Well now they're asking people to get involved in the series. They want people to send in videotapes and photgraphs that cover a day in the life of a black person in America. If you decide to send in a video it has to be under 5 minutes in length. The videos and photos sent in could become a part of the series.

For more details and to learn how to submit a tape/photo click here

-Ant

Your Daily Dose of Coonery!!!

Did you remember to get your taxes done by the April 15th deadline? Well if you were in front of this "Fas Tax" on the final day of tax season you got a treat with your check. Apparently they were trying to lure people to come in and get their taxes done by putting a DJ and a stripper out in front of the business, however it looks like everybody that was headed in the store, stopped to look at the ass shakin in the parking lot. If H&R Block advertised like this, there would never be tax evasion, I promise you.

-Ant

You're Welcome...

-Mike

They Need They Ass Beat...

If you haven't heard about it by now, eight teens in Florida were recently charged in the videotaped beating of one of their classmates. With charges ranging from kidnapping to battery, these kids face life sentences for the incident. Six girls and two boys (who acted as look-outs), recorded the act because they wanted to put the video on YouTube. The kids were arrested and most had posted bond. One of the girls who couldn't afford it got some help from Dr. Phil.

Some employees from the Dr. Phil show, posted bond for Mercades Nichols, one of the girls seen on the tape. I would've let that little girl sit in jail all damn year. They have the thing videotaped!! The evidence shows that a girl got jumped 6 vs. 1, and people from the Dr. Phil show are showing compassion and empathy for these tacky ass kids? A spokeswoman for Dr. Phil said that in the past, the show has helped out potential guests, who needed it, but in this case, "certain staff members went beyond our guidelines." Since the bond was posted, the spokeswoman said any ideas to have the kids on the show have been dropped.

Dr. Phil is a tacky dude, but his show sunk to a new low with this one. I've seen people get their bond set excessively high just so they couldn't afford to get out (enter Jena 6), and yet most of these yamps posted bond before they got through with the booking process. Then when there's one who couldn't afford to get out and who may have had to deal with the agony of sitting in a cell for a while and thinking about what she'd done, here comes money hungry Dr. Phil to the rescue. They face life sentences, but if the justice system is as sympathetic as the Dr. Phil show, they'll be out in a year.

-Ant

One King Inspires Another

Genius.

Sean Combs. Record Executive Mogul. Television Producer Extraordinaire. Noted Restaurateur. Fashion Icon.

MTV documented the development of Sean John Clothing's New York Fashion Week showing in Bryant Park (Jan. 2008) through an incredible special that not only gave insight into Comb's fashion initiatives, but his personal life. I must admit, I never felt like Puff was that involved in Sean John clothing. I figured that he dropped in on a couple meetings, rejected a few logos, and "diddy-bopped" to his next priority. Watching the documentary and witnessing Combs meticulous attention to every detail of fabric, cut and logistics, I gained an understanding of why Puff is #1 at everything he touches.

True passion. Only true passion will fuel 18-hour days and marathon planning and execution meetings. Only true passion will drive one to demand the very best at all costs. Only true passion could position one man to be the leader in so many varied fields.

Puff has inspired me to "go hard" daily towards the goals I have for myself.

If you didn't get a chance to check out the special, watch the entire special at MTV Overdrive

Why Black Women Hate Kim Kardashian?

I blog pretty much daily. If I'm not writing one, I'm reading one, and in my blogging experience, NO ONE gets hated on more than Kim Kardashian. What makes it worse is that the majority of these pessimists are young black women. My young queens have so much spite for this woman it's scary. With all this hate, I was lead to ponder the question: Why Do Black Women Hate Kim Kardashian?

My quest for an answer, began with exploring the most common criticisms that she faces. One of the things that black women hate about Kardashian is that "she's a hoe." What the hell makes her a hoe? Lets see she made what was supposed to be a private sex tape with her boyfriend of three years while they were on vacation, yeah that's real hoeish. I've seen the tape and personally, everything in it was by the book standard. She didn't get peed on, she wasn't tied up, it wasn't a threesome, it was just sex. In fact, I know some of the women who hate on her, and their sexual history is far more unconventional than that videotape. So her being a hoe based on this tape is an invalid beef.

"Why is Kim Kardashian even famous?" That seems to be a question that a lot of black women ask themselves when looking for a reason to hate on the woman. This is usually followed by some comment on Kardashian dating guys for money. Lets see, her deceased father was an accomplished, Los Angeles attorney, who I'm pretty sure had a few dollars. She's no different from anyone who grows up privileged. She doesn't need any dudes money, In fact, between the sex tape royalties and her reality show, I'm sure she makes enough on her own.

The most common reason that Kardashian gets hated on, is her current relationship with NFL Running Back, Reggie Bush. He's an attractive, wealthy black athlete, and he's in love with an attractive young woman, but the problem with her is, she's not black. Every black woman who hates on Kim Kardashian, wants to know why Bush isn't with a black woman. This is racism and a half. It's not enough when a black person finds love, they have to find it with a person of the same race or it's somehow unqualified. If Reggie Bush was with a black woman, lets say Melyssa Ford, would that make other black women happy? Nope. What if he found a black woman at a strip club, took her off the pole and saved her from a life of lap dances and tips? That wouldn't make a difference either. My point is, if he was with a black woman, other black women would find a way to hate on that too, so it really wouldn't matter.

So lets see, Kim Kardashian is a beautiful, intelligent woman, with a butt like Serena Williams. She comes from a large, close knit family, where her father was a famous lawyer, and her stepfather was an Olympic Gold Medalist. She was born into wealth, and she doesn't need it from any man. She's attracted to black men, and is lucky to have one who cares enough to ignore everyone in his ear telling him she's not worth his time. She has love, money, family, and happiness. So why do black women hate Kim Kardashian? Maybe because she has everything most black women want. Let the hating begin...

-Ant

Spike gets his Props

Spike Lee was honored recently by Chrysler LLC with their "Behind The Lens" distinction for outstanding achievements in Film and Television. With a body of work that includes over 35 films through Lee's 40 Acres & A Mule Filmworks, Lee is recognized as a leading director, producer, and screenplay writer in the entertainment industry. Lee's first feature film, "She's Gotta Have It", was shot in two weeks on a $175,000 budget. The film went on to gross $7 million dollars at the box office. Talk about amazing!

Chrysler Senior Vice President - External Affairs and Public Policy (Auburn Hills), Frank Fountain shares, “Spike Lee is synonymous with thoughtful and provocative filmmaking and activism in Hollywood which has inspired a generation of filmmakers, uplifted actors and expanded the field to include many more African Americans in key roles behind the lens. He fully embodies the spirit behind this award and Chrysler is delighted to celebrate his commitment and passion.”

In conjunction with award, the Chrysler Foundation donated $25,000 to Lee’s alma mater, Morehouse College, in the realm of Sports Journalism.

-Mike

WTF??!?!??!!?

R. Kelly looks like a damn fool in his new promo pics. I hope this isn't gonna be a theme for his next album. I miss the good ol' R. Kelly, before and immediately after the sex tape (which I sold for 10 bucks a whop in High School...thanks Kells). He pretty much lost it when he made part 2-22 of Trapped in The Closet. Will the real R. Kelly step forward, cuz this guy right here aint got it all. I'm scared as F lookin at this pic

-Ant

Things Only I Might Care About...

My favorite Basketball Player, Kobe Bryant Jumping Over an Aston Martin...I damn near Bought the Shoes and Tried It.

-Ant

The Day That Changed America

Tomorrow, April 4, 2008, marks the 40th anniversary of the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. assassination. In honor of Dr. King, CNN is airing a groundbreaking documentary tonight called Black in America, An Eyewitness to Murder: The King Assassination.

This will be the first installment in CNN's, Black In America series. To find out more click here. Make sure you tune in to CNN tonight at 9pm ET.

-Ant