I wake up to read a few posts, and I see dudes are trying to minimize the efforts of King in comparison with Jay.
King didn't do much in terms of action, are you serious? Then you say the youth can easily identify with Jay more so than actual activists who are recorded in history as doing something that transcends materialism. You're trying to minimize the efforts and struggle of the same activists who were instrumental in the passage of civil rights laws?
No wonder the majority of the youth is still ****** up, and you have dudes like ninja pulling out statistics in every other thread about the dire straits of African Americans.
Look who we place on a pedestal as being the voice of the people?
I mentioned this to my mom earlier, and she was disgusted that anyone would be comparing Jay Z to MLK or even Malcolm for that matter. You can say it's a generational gap, but statistically we are still in the same rut as in the 60's up until the present day, and if Jay is as influential as MLK or Malcolm as some say, why isn't he shedding light on the situation other than showing his love for the art world, or shouting out fashion designers who are so far removed from the plight that most who listen to the music are still going through?
The art world man? Come on. Dudes in the hood don't give a **** about art galleries. But I bet you'll say Jay inspires people to get into art, but check out the going rate for one of those art pieces, or better yet what does it have to do with unemployment, or trying to rectify the issues that still cripple minorities as whole?
If you're a billionaire you should bring more attention to social issues, and set up foundations that help the cause for improvement. That's how you become etched in history.
You know why Bill Gates, and a host of other white millionaires and billionaires don't lend a voice to social issues? Because there are plenty of other white people who are out there doing just as well, and if anything, it's mostly white people who come to the aid for blacks in times of duress, similar to Sean Penn or Brad Pitt during the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina. You rarely see black celebrities doing anything like that. Collectively, whites are not going through the same issues as the black community. But best believe the philanthropic efforts of the Gates foundation or other wealthy white celebrities far outshines that of Jay Z and Beyonce.
People say look where he came from, but what route did he take to get where he's at today? Yeah, the youth can cling on to that hope all they want, but you can see the music industry is not the same as it was in 96 when Jay came into the game. He's a leech like Jordan, and that's why I stopped buying Jordans. No way can I justify spending 160+ for crap quality sneakers which are targeted at the black community.
Things are changing, and as much as dudes complain about the business aspect ruining hip hop, the guy who says his presence is charity is largely responsible for that shift.
I cringed watching the video for Picasso Baby...
Ya'll can have that.
