Where Have You Been All My Life?

Today, I came across a news story that begged the question, "Why? Why did you stop making music? Why did you leave us?" This question was posed to one of my idols, Ms. Lauryn Hill. Let's just say I, along with millions of others, have been desperately wondering this same question for years. I won't paraphrase the article, but I will say that it did not disappoint. Here's the comment that I made after reading/listening to it:

This interview gave me exactly what I needed to hear. I appreciate the fact that Lauryn takes her music (art) as seriously as I do. It's like waiting on good food. I don't mind if the chef takes a long time to make my food, as long as the food comes out as close to perfection as possible. Don't get me wrong- I may be hungry, but I'm still willing to wait. You can't rush perfection.

I hope that Lauryn takes as much time as she needs to prepare herself for a return to us. Honestly, I'm really just encouraged to know that, at some point, she will return. Until then, I'll continue to be patient.

I can't lie- I feel guilty for seeing Lauryn's disappearance as abandonment. We often forget that stars are people, too. I truly respect that fact that she was able to step away from the limelight to not only take care of her family, but take care of herself too. Now that she's ready (on her own terms), I feel like her return will bring some truly authentic music. I'M ECSTATIC!

Read the full article here: http://n.pr/aodyMe
Listen to the full interview here: http://n.pr/bHSJcy

India Arie - Beautiful Flower (original recording)

This is the song I referenced in my post about "Entertainment as Food." India is singing the original recording in this video. Listen to the words, hopefully you can get it stuck in your head, too!

Def Poetry: A Blues For Nina

My favorite part of the BET Awards was the nod to "Love Jones," one of my favorite movies! Check out this clip from the actual movie, starring Nia Long and Larenz Tate.

Okay Chris, Fine. I'll Give You a Chance

Forget the #TeamChris and #TeamRihanna phenemenon for a second. I was NEVER a part of either team. I don't support domestic violence and because the details of the event were fuzzy, I chose to not support either of them. Now, I understand that a good person forgives, but I didn't feel like either of their first statements were sincere.

What happened between Chris Brown and Rihanna is none of my business, nor did I care to know. I was just upset because these two people serve as icons and role models for kids who don't have ANYONE else to look to. I was upset at how they allowed themselves to show anything but their best behavior to these kids. Especially to kids who have witnessed domestic violence, this incident just served as further reinforcement that violence is okay.

But this...this is raw emotion. It's raw sincerity. It's authentic remorse. After seeing this performance, I couldn't keep my guard up any longer. I appreciate the fact that he gave his all in this performance, allowed himself to look like a punk on national television and showed himself to be humble and thankful when he won an award at the end of the show.

Now, while I am still not #TeamChris, nor #TeamRihanna, I am willing to give Chris Brown another chance. This performance reminded me why I liked him in the first place, and his emotion reminded me that everyone makes mistakes. I hope that he's taken the past year to get himself together, find real help and truly think about the terrible thing that he did...because I didn't want to stop liking him. I loved his music, but I fundamentally could not let myself support him after his dirty laundry aired.

Now, before everyone starts saying, "I was with him through it all," think about what you're saying. Because I definitely had some words for a few of you back when everyone was saying "Rihanna probably provoked him. She deserved it." (Yes, I did hear that disgusting comment on more than one occasion.) I appreciate his candidness and I appreciate how he honored Michael Jackson. He hasn't completely won me to his "team," but I'm open to checking him out.

Now, this isn't a celebrity/pop culture blog, so I'm NOT even going to get started on Alicia "Homewrecker" Keys. I'm sorry, but I'm just not the type of person who can separate the person from their music. If you are fortunate enough to be placed in a position where millions listen to what you have to sing or say...you must also realize that you are serving as a role model for those millions of people, too. It's not fair that their personal lives have to be on display, but with great power comes great responsibility.