Letter To Byron Hurt

Dear Mr. Hurt

After watching your Beyond Beats & Rhymes documentary in my video journalism class, there were a lot of topics that you came across that created a good, strong, and critical thinking discussion in our class. The movie was very informational and I feel that it got a lot of people to look at hip-hop through a critical lens. We picked up a lot of what I think you tried to inform us about by all the great sources and interviews you were able to get into the movie. We talked about hip-hip being "dead". But we also discussed how it evolved into what it is now. How the industry and businesses are a big part of what being put out and the kind of rap that most people are listening to now, which is mostly drugs,sex,and violence. I feel that hip-hop has unfortunately entered a spiral where the only thing being listened to is such degrading topics that you spoke about. I definitely look and listen to hip-hop differently after watching Beyond Beats & Rhymes. I was never a big fan of mainstream hip-hop that most people listen to now because I never felt that there was a deep meaning in the music being played on the radio other than entertainment. I learned a lot from your video and I hope that other people got the same out of it that I did and hopfully hip-hop will go back to its roots and will turn to more positive raps and rhymes.


Sincerely,

Miguel Ojeda

Review: Beyond Beats & Rhymes

Beyond Beats & Rhymes, a doucmentary about hip-hop and its cons by Byron Hurt is powerful on showing the truth behind hip-hop. This film is important for the youth of this generation to see. Not a lot of people, especially the youth analyze the lyrics that rap puts out to the public. I'm not gonna sit here and lie and act like I don't listen to some of the ignorant misogynistic music that a lot of people do. What people don't realize is that these lyrics are being heard by all genders and ethnicities and that some words like" bitch, hoe, slut, fag, pussy , nigga etc." are degrading. IN the film the said hip-hop was stuck in a box. I feel like this a lightweight true because radio stations and music channel are not playing the good rap music. They are not playing Immortal Technique or Zion-I and artist that rap about social issues. In the film a guy said Hip Hop is all about drugs and hoes. I strongly disagree with this. As far as my understanding hip-hop is MC'n, Dj'n, graffiti, and breakdancing. May be unfortunately drugs and hoes is what hip hop is all about in the mainstream industry . Getting a lot of different points of views from different faces of hip-hop made the film a lot stronger for Hurt.

RAP 2 ROCK?!?!?!

So we all know who Lil Wayne is now a days. Young money, Yung Mula, Weezy F. BABY,all the same guy we know as the " Greatest Rapper Alive", as he titled himself. His rap career has been a long one. It wasn't until a couple of years ago that he exploded to what he has become. He is something far form normal with out a doubt. He's a monster, a beast, and a martion. Constantly envading our ipods and earsdrums with crazy metaphorical raps. You won't understand Lil Wayne if you've never listened to him.Lil Wayne took a turn in is career and now is doing rock!! He already has a single out of his new album on the way " The Rebirth". I personally have listened to a couple of his rock songs, and I'm not gonna lie but they lightweight slap. Different from what I would normally expect form this hip-hop legend but I'm not mad at him. But will every one else like it? Will everyone else still support him? His fan bases do vary a lot from all different ethnicities, but a lot are also deep hip-hop fans, strictly hip-hop, will they merge to rock? I guess we'll have to wait to see whats in stores for us. I can't say if he is going to stay a rocker and drop the rapping but Lil Wayne said, “The rock s**t just comes from what my life is now. I’ve grown into this person. I just got - I’m not going to say ’so good’ at what I was doing, but it became such a regularity for me that I got tired of it. And then I said, ‘You know what? I’m not going to rap on this one."

SHAKE THE WORLD!

THIS IS HELLA COOL!! I cam across this video on vimeo.com. A documentary is being made by stwpictures called Shake The World. On April 11, 2009 at 4 pm pacific time people all over the world will take their camera's out and record whatever they are doing and interesting at that time for a minute. Creativity is the key. All millions of clips from normal people all over the world will put put in the documentary. A giant collaboration of the world. Everyone always wonders what everyone else is doing. This is what we are going to be doing on April 11th.



Shake The World from Shake The World on Vimeo.

This seems hella interesting and I think I might just do it. I mean imagine, millions of people all over the world recording all at the same time exactly what they are doing. A film is going to be made out of this to tell a story of everyone's life at that time. It really is a giant collaboration film, filmed by everyone who participates.

FOR MORE INFORMATION VISIT STWPICTURES

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APRIL FOOLS

HAHAHAH!!! It seems that every year I end up forgetting about good old April Fools day!! But not this year. I did almost forget but I ended up remembering and came through with two good pranks.I told two of my friends that the police was looking for them for some things they did and they believed me. They got scared and didn't know what to do . I mean i thought they would have caught on because it was april fools day but they didn't . Eventually I just told them.