Ask Many Questions, Like Children Often Do

Stanford law professor and author Lawrence Lessig was on 

Charlie Rose Friday night promoting his new book: 

(New Yorker review HERE.)

In addition to discussing (and warning us about) the future of intellectual property and copyright law, he also talked about his interaction with Barack Obama when they were colleagues at Stanford. I totally recommend watching this:

Youtube video makers, song samplers, and photo jackers beware! Lessig argues that a "war" is being waged on "kids and others who create and consume art," comparing that war to the overly-criminalized and equally unsuccessful war on drugs. But through compromise, he suggests ways to bridge the gap between the two opposing sides: (1) politicians and artists' lawyers who cling to the copyright fundamentals of the past vs. (2) the generation of creative criminals who live and breathe artistic mash-ups.

I had never heard of Lessig, but I bought the book anyway. Technology has instigated a new kind of artistic renaissance, and as a blogging participant, I should probably educate myself and be more aware of the legalities surrounding the unlicensed media I use on this site. That, and it's really about the kids (lol)- the technology will only get better and our resources are bound to multiply -- if being artistic makes us all criminals now, then future generations are in a lot of trouble. 

Me, age 14, at Woodstock '98.

Photo courtesy of my Momzilla.

It's a weak analogy, but just imagine if they didn't let kids use tape recorders ten years ago... Kidzilla would never have conducted her first artist interview or written an article about it for her local newspaper. Like in Back To The Future, I'd get erased from the photo! Third Eye Blind and Dishwalla may not be super relevant today, but back then, they helped me figure out that I wanted to build a career in music. And coincidentally, the lead singer of Third Eye Blind was in my office a few weeks ago... My boss completely blew up my spot and (true story) had me show him the article I wrote. Ten years later, the whole experience came full circle- right before my very eyes.

Listen HERE.

You'll Never Find Nobody Better Than Me

We all have certain songs that we associate - by choice or by accident - with relationships, sex, and love. Maxwell's "A Woman's Worth," Alanis Morissette's "You Oughta Know," Adina Howard's "Freak," and Keith Sweat's "Make It Last Forever" are just a few examples... I'm sure you all have many more, with stories too!

After reading "Love in the Time of Darwinism," an article by City Journal's Kay S. Hymowitz, I was inspired to reintroduce my music blogger self to my Carrie Bradshaw self: earlier this year, we tackled the topic of open marriage together, so why not back-track and collaborate on the chaotic world of contemporary dating? The Darwinism article defines itself as "a report from the chaotic postfeminist dating scene, where only the strong survive," and provides a thorough evaluation of what both males and females go through as participants in the ever-evolving process. Let's start with some male perspective:

"The woman may be hoping for a hookup, but she may also be looking for a husband, a co-parent, a sperm donor, a relationship, a threesome, or a temporary place to live. She may want one thing in November and another by Christmas. 'I’ve gone through phases in my life where I bounce between serial monogamy, Very Serious Relationships and extremely casual sex,' writes Megan Carpentier on Jezebel, a popular website for young women. 'I’ve slept next to guys on the first date, had sex on the first date, allowed no more than a cheek kiss, dispensed with the date-concept altogether after kissing the guy on the way to his car, fucked a couple of close friends and, more rarely, slept with a guy I didn’t care if I ever saw again.' Okay, wonders the ordinary guy with only middling psychic powers, which is it tonight?"

I guess that is rough to deal with, but NEWFLASH gentlemen: the ladies deal with it too! Men change their minds and send just as many mixed-signals as women do. It's human nature! In high school, I added the acronym BBD to my verbal arsenal - the Bigger Better Deal - representing the idea that people constantly want to upgrade their mate. AKA Darwinism, our inherent/biological desire to evolve (right, Boz?). Now, mix that madness with the current social climate, where technology plays such a large role in our day-to-day communication, and it's like adding yet another log to a fire that's already out of control...

"Women complain that instead of calling to ask them out, or even make plans for a date, men simply text, 'Heading downtown. Where r u?' as they walk to the subway. That may be deliberate. 'There is no longer any reason to answer the phone when a woman calls you or return her call when she leaves you a message,' insists one dating pro at World of Seduction. 'What should you do? Text message, of course.' Text messages, he argues, deflect unnecessary personal involvement and keep women on edge. Game goes even further, actually encouraging men to 'neg' their 'target' women—that is, to undermine their confidence subtly by ignoring or mildly insulting them. The hotter the woman, the more essential it is to neg her."

Awesome. SMH- but I'm not even mad! Although I believe I'm more direct and honest than most girls when it comes to communicating, I too am guilty of playing into these kinds of strategic tactics. But is it our fault, or a result of the technology? What came first- the chicken or the egg? All of these relationship woes leave so much to be discussed, which, if you ask me, brings it all back to the music. And since this blog serves as the soundtrack to current events, applying music to dating is no big feat. 808s and Heartbreak? - Literally. Good album title Kanye. Very fitting for my theme...

Kanye West "Heartless"

Dealing with some wishy-washy relationship drama, Ye asks his lady "how could you be so heartless?!" And who knows. Maybe she's a soul thief like he claims, or maybe his actions have worn her down to nothing. We'll probably never know.

Solange "T.O.N.Y"

Open and unapologetic in her lyrics, Solange lets us into her seemingly insecure world after a one night stand. "He wasn't just a regular guy," she claims, simultaneously noting her stubbornness- "but I still refuse to call his ass!" She said it herself: Damn this would make a real good song. PS- I'm loving the Kid Cudi and Cee-Lo cameos!

Lastly, and certainly not new to The Labyrinth,

Lykke Li "Little Bit"

Showing us that there are degrees of her devotion, Lykke admits that she's only a "little bit" in love. She'll even forget about her "tainted heart" as long as her boo reciprocates her legit, lukewarm feelings.

Apparently, Toronto MC Drake appreciated the "Little Bit" record... he hopped on it, pause, to sing and rhyme- leaking his version last week. Listen to it HERE.

I would do it

Push button

Pull trigger

Climb mountain

Thanks to Shamz for the link.

Are you the BBD, or are you looking for one? Or both?!? The more I listen to relationship-inspired music, the more I'm realizing that everyone's a mess! So if we're all confused, and it's a Darwinian rat race, and technology is warping and re-writing our paths of communication, how is a dater supposed to survive?

The Way We Connected, It Was Something Electric

Thursday night, I had the privilege of attending

Hip Hop Monologues:

The Life and Mind of Jim Jones.

I say privilege both seriously and sarcastically: Jim performed only two nights by invitation only, but... it's also Jimmy. Naturally, I was expecting a train wreck. But there was no such thing! In fact, the whole production was executed in a somewhat decent manner. That said, it's important to note that Jim's story is admittedly not too compelling. Okay, you were a hustler. Okay, you have haters in the hood. Okay, all the ladies want to hump you- we get it. If the musical showed me something I hadn't seen before, then I could let all the self-aggrandizing that came with it go. But it didn't. So I can't.

However, my love for Capo lives on despite this average theatrical experience. He did something amazing last week, and threw two verses on MGMT's "Electric Feel" - the song I constantly co-sign as my favorite this year.

I have to give Jimmy credit for this move... out for almost a year, the song is so hot, I'm actually upset he's the one who got to it first. Wale's manager posted the remix on Elitaste, admitting that it's a shame Mr. Folarin missed the boat. I wholeheartedly agree- Wale would have murdered that track. But then again, there is so much sex appeal and swagger on Jim's version, and it's actually not bad. MGMT + Capo Status = oww. Listen to the track HERE.

Other stuff I'm loving?

Friendly Fires "On Board"

Groovy percussion; definitely one of my faves on their album. Also, FYI, the lead singer's dance moves are out of this world! Peep their "Paris" performance on Later with Jools Holland:

He deserves a cookie for the hip action, and his voice isn't too shabby either.

And lastly, if you haven't checked it out yet, watch

Gnarls Barkley "Mystery Man"

Never disappointing, Danger Mouse and Cee-Lo continue to create magic. Learn more about it at Stereogum.

Oh yeah, and "Pop Champagne" is officially my guilty pleasure...
...making me a sucker for catchy club records, and a hypocrite :)

"I wanna see you dance- see you dance"... SMH.

Wipe Your Feet Really Good On The Rhythm Rug

After seeing Lykke Li perform A Tribe Called Quest classic "Can I Kick It" at two of her shows, I had been wondering if Q-Tip even knew who she was. And if he did, would he feel her sound? Both questions were answered on Tuesday when Tip surprised the audience at MTVU's Woodie Awards, and joined Lykke on stage to perform his group's song, duet style. The look on his face was priceless; it was obvious that he was extremely taken with her stage presence. And apparently, Q-Tip is one of her favorite artists, so she, too, was blown away to be performing with him. I didn't bring my good camera, but Zimbio posted photos - this one is my favorite:

For so many reasons, I want to know whose idea this was. The label, or MTVU?

Overall, I thought the show was really well done: From Q-Tip, to Emmanuel Jal, to Asher Roth, to Spank Rock- all the performers and presenters seemed relevant to me. Until the show goes live on the 19th, you can peek at these photos:

SPIN did a bang-up job summarizing the show- read about it HERE.

I'll upload my footage after it airs.

My President Is Black

Rahm Emanuel, Obama's newly hired Chief of Staff, is a total babe. Sadly, I'm not the only one who thinks this fiery, salt and pepper-haired hunk is great... just as I started digging up incredible articles from Rahm's past, the mainstream media also went to town. Gawker, it seems, is equally obsessed, and rightfully so! Didn't you hear about the steak knife?

"The best Rahm Emanuel story is not the one about the decomposing two-and-a-half-foot fish he sent to a pollster who displeased him... No, the definitive Rahm Emanuel story takes place in Little Rock, Ark., in the heady days after Bill Clinton was first elected President.

Revenge was heavy in the air as the group discussed the enemies - Democrats, Republicans, members of the press - who wronged them during the 1992 campaign...

Suddenly Emanuel grabbed his steak knife and, as those who were there remember it, shouted out the name of another enemy, lifted the knife, then brought it down with full force into the table.

''Dead!'' he screamed.

The group immediately joined in the cathartic release: ''Nat Landow! Dead! Cliff Jackson! Dead! Bill Schaefer! Dead!'''

I love him. F*ck Ruff Ryders and Sarah Palin; the meanest pitbull in a skirt is Rahm Emanuel- former ballerina turned political assassin. And now he's the Obaminator's right hand man.

And what a family!...

His brother, Ari Emanuel, is the Hollywood agent who inspired famed Entourage character, Ari Gold. If descriptions like "bad cop" and "watch dog" aren't enough to win you over, Slate had a great article on Rahm, and I'm sure you can learn more about him via Google.

OWW.

But before I let my hormones get the best of me, it's necessary to note how much Hip Hop has embraced Obama. In fact, NPR had an article on some rappers who've penned rhymes solely for his cause:

"Mark Anthony Neal is a professor of black pop culture at Duke University and a visiting scholar at the Annenberg School for Communication at the University of Pennsylvania. He says that in the past 20-odd years, hip-hop historically has been black America's first response to national news."

While the hip hop community may have known about these songs, it's refreshing to see the mainstream media point them out as well. But beyond music, there's plenty of other celebratory stories to be told. Check out Obama's Flickr album from election night, watch footage of him and Michelle doing a happy dance, and read a relieved letter from Fahrenheit 9/11 filmmaker Michael Moore. Of course, all of this media is just skimming the surface of the cultural domino-effect that Obama's campaign triggered, and like I've been saying all along, we can only hope that this momentum continues to inspire real change.

And lastly, it wouldn't be right to celebrate without bidding farewell to the elephant in the room, the frightening Sarah Palin- a woman who's religious beliefs stood to demolish the rights that women have fought for for decades; a woman who made feminist Eve Ensler have nightmares.

South Dakota's Measure 11, California's Proposition 4, and Colorado's Amendment 48 are just a few examples of state legislation that was proposed by Palin-like religious neo-conservatives, and all are detrimental to a woman's right to choose. According to Woman's E-News...

"California's ballot initiative would require a woman under 18 to notify her parents before having an abortion, and wait 48 hours between the time of notification and the procedure."

-and worse-

"The Colorado measure would alter the state constitution to define human life as beginning 'with the moment of fertilization,' giving full legal rights to the mass of cells formed immediately after sperm and egg meet."

Yikes! The South Dakota legislation was even more direct- calling for a complete state ban of abortion in circumstances outside of rape, incest and endangering a woman's health. In other words, death of Roe v. Wade. Luckily, none of that garbage passed, but not hearing about it in the news prior to election day is disheartening. I'm not sure about yours, but in my book, reporting on what rights you might lose trumps which politician might win.

But you know what, Sarah?

Your own Alaskan constituents didn't want to hear it a few weeks ago...

And neither did Americans on election day- thank god.

Putting those small, important victories aside, there was one outcome from election day that managed to really bother me... 70% of African Americans voted in favor of California's Gay Marriage ban, Proposition 8.

That's right. In a year that brought race and equality issues to the forefront, the majority of African American voters in California were unable to see gay marriage as a civil rights issue :( Again, I blame the influence of religion -not skin color- for this unfortunate reality check. It's truly sad that such an uplifting moment in history can be tainted by such a (is it wrong to say, "ironic"?) step backward.

I Hope It's Gonna Make You Notice...

Just some artists/videos/songs that you might want to check out:

The Knux "Bang Bang"

Feeling these N'awlins boys. Not what I expected, which is always refreshing.

Kings of Leon "Use Somebody"

By far, one of the best songs on "Only By The Night." I love that it starts out seeming broad and impersonal, but you eventually realize he's singing about one person in particular. I love him.

Jim Jones f. Ron Browz and Juelz Santana "Pop Champaign"

A friend sent me this record a few months ago when it still belonged to Ron Brownz, asking what I thought about it. I wrote back "Superstars, no Lupe" - it was clearly catchy, but I need more than that these days. I'd call Jimmy "Deebo" for making the track his own, but we already knew that's how he rolls.

All American Rejects "Gives You Hell"

Not a fan of the band's generic sound, but the lead singer is cute as a button, and the song is so hilariously bitter and anthemic, that I had to post it.

Keyshia Cole f. Tupac "Playa Cardz Right"

Keyshia and Pac sound perfect together. Too bad they had to go and ruin the song by spelling the title stupidly!

Matt & Kim "Daylight"

A dude at work directed this video. The treatment is beyond creative...

Q-Tip "Move"

Q-Tip proves that at almost 40-years old, he can still look flyer than most of these industry guys. Even if he is biting Michael. Pause.

And just as a bonus, my new fave band Friendly Fires covered

Lykke Li's "I'm Good, I'm Gone."

After touring together for months, I'm glad they got some kind of gem from her!

Listen to the song HERE.

Back Flipped On The Mattress They Slept On Me On

Watch his victory speech below, or read the transcript HERE.

"So let us summon a new spirit of patriotism, of responsibility, where each of us resolves to pitch in and work harder and look after not only ourselves but each other.
Let us remember that, if this financial crisis taught us anything, it's that we cannot have a thriving Wall Street while Main Street suffers.
In this country, we rise or fall as one nation, as one people. Let's resist the temptation to fall back on the same partisanship and pettiness and immaturity that has poisoned our politics for so long.
Let's remember that it was a man from this state who first carried the banner of the Republican Party to the White House, a party founded on the values of self-reliance and individual liberty and national unity.
Those are values that we all share. And while the Democratic Party has won a great victory tonight, we do so with a measure of humility and determination to heal the divides that have held back our progress."

I'm so glad the guy who inspires people won. There's no doubt that many of us are now filled with hope, optimism, and the motivation to embrace and contribute to real CHANGE. This kind of social awareness is something I've wanted to see in people since I was a little kid- I just hope it grows and builds, and doesn't fizzle-out like a fad. There is so much work to be done... and personally, I need to see that change before I can fully hop on the bandwagon. Sorry! *Ducks rotten tomatoes*

"Just Might Be OK"

I'd Make You Call Out My Name... I'd Ask Who It Belongs To

Saturday night, I had the privilege of seeing Janet Jackson perform at The Garden. Without the support of an opening act, she hit the stage at 8:45 and danced her ass off for over two hours...

Thanks to Ls for hooking it up!

I must have been around 6 or 7 when I first saw Janet perform "Black Cat" on TV, and I'm certain it had a profound impact on my impressionable sponge of a brain. Of course, her brother Michael had already won my heart by that time, so I'm sure it didn't hurt that her song shared his sound a little bit. But now, to see her perform it live, and follow it up with what's probably my favorite Janet song ever?!

Priceless.

Performing "Black Cat" and "If."

The pyro scared the crap out of me! Go HERE if you want more.

In almost thirty years of reinventing herself, this woman has more hits than we can count. Listening to her music in elementary school, high school, and now- the strength of those records doesn't seem to be fading. For example...

"That's The Way Love Goes"

"What's It Gonna Be?" f. Busta Rhymes

"If"

"You Want This"

"Got 'Til It's Gone" f. Q-Tip

...Just to name a few.

And speaking of Q-Tip, I saw The Renaissance Man tape Soul Stage last week...

His album drops Tuesday, the 4th. Election day.