Guru Suffers A Heart Attack

Wow... this is something that I didn't expect to read about after logging on a few minutes ago. Let's send out all the prayers that we can to Guru and his family. Gifted Unlimited Rhymes Universal... we not saying good-bye yet.

Please click here to see th full story at allhiphop.com.

"BORN IN THE GHETTO"

I'm still bobbin' my head to UniverSouLove's hip hop laced spoken word piece, "I Am A Poet". I was about just about to resign myself to my bed, comforter, and pillows when I opened one last e-mail... low and behold there was another hip hop gem that presented itself to me - Germantown and York's "Born In The Ghetto". Thanks Reality from Germantown and York. Am I a fan now? Yes Sir.



For more information on Germantown and York click here.

"I AM A POET" - UniverSouLove

"The page becomes my stage
to wage wars with syllables,
consonants, vowels.
I howl in the thick
of the night.
To conjure my poetical might."
- UniverSouLove, Poet/Hip Hop Extrodiannaire

What can I say about this cat... he's never short of amazing with his pen. He exudes nothing but truth when he speaks of "breathing life into microphones daily." It's an admirable habit to have especially when you've been making the pen and paper do the strut for ten plus years. Say his name with me folks, U-ni-ver-Sou-Love! Last year UniverSouLove along with D.J. Skittells put his signature poem, "I Am A Poet" to music and it spiraled out of control into a hip hop masterpiece. Word to poetry and word to hip hop! Let's us know what you think. :-)



For more information on UniverSouLove:
www.universoulovethepoet.blogspot.com
www.myspace.com/universoulove7

Sequence - "Funk You Up" - Long Version

Aaaaaahhh, I was looking for more videos to include on my Classic Hip Hop page when I came across this gem and I had to "sit my booty down!" A sista was trying to burn a hole in the carpet after listening to these sistas - Cheryl Cook (Cheryl The Pearl), Gwendolyn Chisolm (Blondie), and lead singer/rapper Angie Brown Stone (Angie B.). It is an honor to bless the pages of The Greener Side of Hip Hop with Sequence's "Funk You Up" (1979). I am living my childhood all over again and I am in hip hop heaven. (And if someone knows where to find this group singing this classic live or on a show please let a sista know.)

Two New Pages Added

I've been so inspired tonight by watching some classic hip hop and listening to my seven year old son's reaction to classic hip hop music. So, today I added two additional pages to this blog: Classic Hip Hop and Children's Hip Hop.

Spoken Words: A Candle Light Vigil For Hip Hop (Music)

"The mind of an artist and a hip hop head."


A Candle Light Vigil For Hip Hop (Music)

Hip-hop music needs a life jacket.
Someone, anyone, take the time
to rewind and remember the Golden Times
of hip-hop music.

Hip-hop needs a life support system.
It's lacking creativity, originality,
and wisdom. Where is the vision?

Underground MCs are trying,
but even their def tones go unheard.
This new mumbo jumbo of mashed-up words
is not as nearly needed as Rakim-like superb.

I'm on the verge, of giving up on hip-hop.
I am on the verge of calling the coroner,
saying, “she's almost dead, come get her.”

Hip-hop needs motivation, rejuvenation,
elevation. Someone, please perform
mouth-to-mouth resuscitation on hip-hop music.

Hip-hop is no longer lyrical.
So in a quiet space in my own time
I am performing my own personal vigil.
It's difficult. It's almost something I cannot
handle. So I light seven candles, one at a time,
saying prayers and meditations for the return
of meaningful and great rhymes.

The first candle lit is for peace.
The second candle lit is for dope beats.
The third is for the return of the old boom bap.
The fourth is for the treble and high hats.
The fifth is for the imaginative MC.
The sixth candle is for hip-hop purists like me.
The seventh and final candle is for hip-hop infinity.

Light your candles and mourn and pray
for hip-hop. In a collective spirit hopefully
we can meditate to make the nonsense stop.

Christopher Donshale Sims
Copyright February 15th, 2010

Hailing from Rockford, IL, Christopher D. Sims is a an author, poet, spoken word artist, lyricist, and an advocate for the golden ages of hip hop. "Breathing life into microphones daily", Christopher's poetry pieces can be viewed at www.universoulovethepoet.com or you can dialogue with him on Facebook , Twitter , or MySpace.