Reality television stirs emotions, even two years later. What is it about a camera and revealing your truth that gets so complicated. What is it about our interaction with each other that changes when the camera light is on? While in quarantine, I asked the cast of "Hustle In Brooklyn," some of who I still speak to, to participate in a 'zoom reunion' of sorts, because I was 1. learning how to use zoom and 2. curious to see where they all were and how the experience of reality TV had affected them and their relationship with each other. Needless to say, I got more than what I expected. I chose to wait to post this because, not long after we recorded this, the world was rocked by police brutality and it seemed the wrong time to post anything other than support for the cause. Still, I did not want the time put into this (some of the cast refused to call in...while others simply forgot) to go unnoticed.
Blog
To Be Or Not To Be…A Momager (MadameNoire)
I’ve been toying with the idea of becoming a momager. Yes, I know we all manage our kids lives, but I’m talking about a real momager. I mean, a legitimate, income-generating, business mom type of momager. Think Kris Jenner (Kardashians), Sonia Norwood (Brandy), Tina Douglas (Ashanti), Mandy Cornett (Selena Gomez), or Matthew Knowles (Beyoncé) and Joe … Continue reading To Be Or Not To Be…A Momager (MadameNoire)
Mommynoire Exclusive With Mathew Knowles: Does Your Child Have What It Takes To Be Beyonce?
Admit it. You’ve always thought your daughter was special. Whether you’ve internally blushed when you’ve seen that child pretend performing in front of the mirror, or caught a glimpse of them in your rearview looking cute while hitting that Ariana Grande high note in the backseat of your car, inside, you believe your little girl could be the next….Beyonce. Yes, I said it. The new standard for performance and entertainment excellence. Beyonce’s talent, work ethic, image and success would be the goal if you got up off your lazy, overworked behind and decided to do something about your child’s future career in Entertainment. So where do you start? Well, you could go in a lot of different directions, but one that’s explorable would be reading Mathew Knowles’ recently released book, “The DNA Of Achievers.” True, personally you might not be a fan of what you’ve read on the gossip blogs about this man’s personal life. Still, professionally there is no denying that the secret to Beyonce’s success lies—at least somewhat—in the mind of her father.
On “The Pinkprint,” Nicki Minaj Speaks the Language Of Love (NPR)
The Pinkprint is just a record, as far as hip-hop is concerned. Nothing more, nothing less. But for Nicki Minaj, it's a career-defining moment. Even after she weathered a storm of rap critic scolds unhappy with her for completely crossing over the line she once straddled so well, the dance-pop successes of her last album, Roman Reloaded, overshadowed her artistic credibility. How would she bounce back? As Nicki well knows, hip-hop will only take it so far. Onika Maraj would be a damned fool to fill her third LP with "mixtape Nicki," no matter how many purists plead for it. That style may have gotten her the attention of Lil Wayne, but it certainly didn't earn her platinum plaques or a spot on the Super Bowl halftime show. With The Pinkprint, Nicki gives listeners the right dose of everything she's got to offer.
Raiders Of The Lost Art
Please check out the mini documentary I created and wrote titled "Raiders Of The Lost Art." It was a four part series on the making of the PRhyme album, that aired on Complex.com. http://youtu.be/xMJvdwht-CY
5 Mics: Who Got Next? (The Source)
Opinions are like assholes, right? Isn’t everybody supposed to have one? But for some reason, when it comes to a 5 Mic rating in The Source magazine, the opinion of this so-called Bible seems to be subject to, well, everyone else’s opinion. Actually, I’m proud of that. To say that the opinion of The Source still holds enough weight to shake up a rapper’s emotion is quite impressive.
Okay, okay, admittedly, the Source hasn’t always been on point when it comes to Mic ratings. But one thing we can say is that when it comes to giving out 5 Mics, we’ve got a pretty good track record. Notwithstanding the OBVIOUS mistakes that have been made (please don’t use a DELETED argument here…you know what it was), the Mics have more times than not been a meter to judge good and bad hip-hop. Despite the changing of the guards over the years, all editors have held the coveted 5 Mics to an extremely high standard. A “Classic” rating has never really been easy to come by.
Covering Drake For The Source
Let me start by saying that it took me at least fifteen minutes to log into this page because I haven't posted anything in so long (almost 10 months to be exact). I could have been THAT person that ran and blogged about every little thing I did but then, in actuality, I wouldn't have much … Continue reading Covering Drake For The Source
Jay-Z Unveils “Watch The Throne” At Exclusive Listening Session (BET.com)
For Jay-Z, Watch the Throne is showing his growth. Not so much musically but, moreso, personally. See, Jay has always been ahead of the curve when it comes to rap. That’s no secret. But now he is so established in his career, his new lyrics seem to be about his bigger purpose. There are moments on WTT when Jay makes more references to Jesus than he ever has before, and there was a line or two, or three, about being “Black,” which has never been a secret, but Blackness has never been played up by him on such a socio-political level (see the tentatively titled “No Church”). Maybe Kanye is helping him bring out a deeper sense of religion.
Chris Lighty Launches New Website (BET)
When EPMD rapped the words "please listen to my demo" back in 1989, it was a whole different ball game. Back then, getting your unsigned music into the right hands was no easy task. These days, however, the internet has become the surefire way to get the attention of the bigwigs. Only now, the industry seems more concerned with how many hits your youtube video gets. But what if you just have good music and there's no 2-year old smoking a cigarette in your video? Or better yet, what if you produce your own music and have what Chris Lighty describes as "left of center." Chances are you may not get as much attention online as a 7-year old who takes his grandmother's car for a joyride.
Kim Osorio Reel
I know I'm randomly posting all this stuff, but I'm trying to get it in one place. Kim Osorio Reel, posted with vodpod
The Official Site of Kim Osorio 