JAY-Z "PRAY"

Graffiti in a new light

When Marc Ecko planned a Chelsea street fair in 2005 where graffiti writers could tag mock subway cars, Mayor Bloomberg pulled the permit, arguing that the display encouraged vandalism. Although a judge overruled Hizzoner's veto, urban art still carries a bad rap.
Now graffiti tries bringing its street cred to the art world once more with an exhibit in the same nabe. "Writers Strike," opening tonight at the Lott Gallery of DriveIn24, features a space covered with graffiti contrasted with familiar street objects and corporate ads. Consider it "vandalism versus advertising," getting visitors to question whether graffiti is any more invasive than the barrage of ads they face on streets and subways every day. And what would the Big Apple be without its graffiti?
"Corporate advertisements are just as much an assault on the city as this art," argues Bombin' Magazine editor Craig Dershowitz, whose publication organized the show. "We've been wrestling for a while with the question, why is graffiti illegal?"
The city considers graffiti vandalism a misdemeanor punishable by a jail term, fine and/or community service, with anyone caught defacing property without permission of the owner subject to arrest.
"Graffiti gets a very negative light," gripes aerosol artist TABOO, 29, from Brooklyn, who's been writing since 1992. "It's just really funny that you'll see a sign up for some movie, a sign up for some Camel cigarettes, companies placing ads all over the place, but I pull out a marker and I'm going to be thrown in jail."
TABOO, like many graffiti writers, won't give his real name or occupation because of his illegal activities. "I've gotten arrested," he admits. "They took me down to central. It sucked, but I was out painting again the next night. I do this because I enjoy doing it, and I'll stop when it ceases to be fun."
In the gallery, legends who set the standard for street art work beside rising artists, transforming the once-white and pristine space with vivid tags and colorful characters that leap off the walls, around corners, beneath counters and onto the floor. A blue and lavender flower by street artist Michael De Feo towers from floor to ceiling. Mad Magazine's mascot leers in green.
Almost as diverse as the images are the men spraying them. Some focus on classic tags in different styles, while others incorporate real ads and posters into political collages. Some stick to legal work, like murals for schools and parks, while others lead double lives: working by day, spraying subway tunnels and running from the cops by night.

KEZAM, 29, hails from Australia, where he once tagged trains. Now a grad student at Yale, he toes the line to keep his visa, doing large, legal works on the sides of buildings with his crew in Brooklyn. "There are people in different neighborhoods actually calling for us to redo our walls," he says. "It's interesting - political leaders will tell you that the public hates graffiti, but people complain more about noise."
ELBOW-TOE from Brooklyn, who studies and creates more traditional fine arts, also does street art - larger-than-life drawings and even painted woodcuts, put up using wheatpaste - all over the city.
"I was sick of keeping my art in a studio for no one to see," he explains. Participating in this exhibit has expanded his artistic horizons: "I'm genuinely interested in people who do the other stuff - the crazy letters. It's not my bag, but it takes a lot of skill to think that abstractly," he says, pointing to one tag.
Beneath it stands Johnny Alamo, aka CLARK and FLY I.D. (for "Forever Living Your Infinite Dreams)." He started chalking his name on the street when he was 8. "From that point on, I haven't stopped," he says. He graduated from chalk to markers to spray paint, doing subways, rooftops and alleys before getting arrested just over five years ago. "That rehabilitated me," says the 38-year-old Bronx father. "I paint community murals, backdrops. With my work, I can inspire people of all ages.
"With this show, people can see the beauty of the colors. We can do something creative, some really beautiful work. We're not just defacing a wall."
Which raises the question: Does taking graffiti off the street take the street out of graffiti?
"This is art," says TABOO, "but is this graffiti?" He surveys his own work in progress. "Yeah ... but honestly, real graffiti is on the streets."

Beanie Sigel ft. Rock City 'Go low'

AKEEM (COMING TO AMERICA) PREDICTED THE GIANTS VICTORY TO THE PACKERS

It turns out that the Giants' 23-20 overtime victory over the Packers was described quite nicely by Akeem, the main character in Coming to America, portrayed by Eddie Murphy:

"Oh, it was most exhilarating. The Giants of New York took on the Packers of Green Bay. And in the end, the Giants triumphed by kicking an oblong ball made of pigskin through a big 'H'. It was a most ripping victory."

N.E.R.D

WHAT YOU THINK ABOUT THIS NEW N.E.R.D TRACK

CLICK HERE TO LISTEN

ERNESTIME !!!

I met ERNEST a few months ago at the SNEAKER BISTRO that night we talked about a lot of things music, fashion, etc.....
and he told me about him doing some poetry but the way he said it I didn't think much of it until I saw one of his videos.

STAIGHT OUT OF STRONG ISLAND

THROWBACK !!!

WHO GOT THE PROPS



HERE YOU CAN CHECK IT LIVE



I feel like drinking a 40 when I hear this track.

The New York Giants seem to be unbeatable on the road. The New England Patriots are unbeatable … period. Despite your likely disappointment at not having a Favre-Brady duel, the Super Bowl XLII matchup definitely will be intriguing on many levels. Here are five early questions sure to be discussed in the next two weeks:

1. Will the Patriots find a way to unleash Randy Moss in the Super Bowl?

No. If this postseason has taught us anything about devising a game plan for New England, it's that limiting Moss' touches gives opponents a better chance of winning. He caught only one pass in the Patriots' 21-12 AFC Championship Game win over San Diego, and he had only one reception in an AFC divisional playoff win over Jacksonville.

Going back to the regular season, both Baltimore and Philadelphia controlled Moss as well -- he had nine receptions for 77 yards combined against those teams -- and each team lost by just three points. In other words, New England is a different team when Moss is stifled.

Now does that mean the Patriots won't find other ways to move the football? No. They've proved they have plenty of other weapons, including Wes Welker, Ben Watson and Laurence Maroney.

But the point here is that Moss demoralized the Giants with his big plays in a 38-35 loss Dec. 29 (he caught six passes for 100 yards and two touchdowns, including a 65-yarder). If he does that again, New York won't win.


2. Should the New England defense still be considered a weakness?

There are still questions about the athleticism of their linebackers, but you have to give the Pats credit: They were a pain in the butt in the red zone Sunday, as the Chargers learned. San Diego made three trips inside New England's 20-yard line and wound up kicking three field goals. Simply put, you don't beat the Patriots by getting three points when you could have had seven.

In fact, the biggest play of the game came in the third quarter when Patriots inside linebacker Junior Seau stopped running back Michael Turner on a third-and-1 at New Englands' 4-yard line.

If San Diego converts that play and scores a touchdown, the Chargers take a 16-14 lead. Instead, they settled for a 24-yard field goal by Nate Kaeding that left them trailing 14-12. San Diego never came close to taking the lead again.

By the way, the Giants weren't exactly phenomenal in the red zone in their 23-20 overtime win over Green Bay in the NFC Championship Game, but they did score two touchdowns on five trips inside the Packers' 20-yard line.

3. Which players will be X factors in Arizona?

There's no question that New England backup running back Kevin Faulk will have to keep making the plays he has produced this postseason.
When the Chargers took away Tom Brady's favorite receiving options, diminutive Faulk always made a clutch catch to keep the chains moving. He finished with eight receptions for 82 yards, and his critical, third-down catch late in the fourth quarter helped New England put the game away.

In short, Faulk can kill an opponent with his open-field running ability and sure hands.

For New York, it's become quite apparent that rookie running back Ahmad Bradshaw is a valuable weapon. At 5-9, 198 pounds, he doesn't have the size of starter Brandon Jacobs, but he definitely runs just as hard. In fact, he's one reason the Giants controlled the football for a little more than 40 minutes against the Packers.

If Bradshaw continues to produce solid numbers (he had 63 yards and a touchdown on 16 carries against Green Bay), New York will have a strong one-two backfield punch to throw at the Patriots.


4. Should the Giants be concerned about their pass rush?

No. Even though New York failed to sack Brett Favre, the defense made key contributions in other areas. It forced two turnovers, the last of which was an interception by cornerback Corey Webster that led to the winning 47-yard field goal by Lawrence Tynes in overtime.

The defense also limited Packers running back Ryan Grant to 29 yards while allowing Green Bay to convert just one of its 10 third-down opportunities. Although sacks would've been nice, those numbers meant just as much to the Giants' success.

However, the Giants certainly will need more pressure on Brady. They led the NFL with 53 sacks and have the athletes to create problems for any quarterback.

One thing that definitely would help the New York cause is getting defensive end Michael Strahan going. He struggled with Packers right tackle Mark Tauscher, and the Giants will need a big game from him against a Patriots offensive line that is as good as any in the NFL.


5. So why should anyone believe the Giants can beat the Patriots when they couldn't do it in the season finale last month?

Simply put, the Giants are more confident and focused than they were at the end of the regular season. They used that loss to the Patriots to grow, and they've become more dangerous with each passing week.

New York certainly proved it had the talent to compete with New England in the regular season. Now, the Giants think they're good enough to win a championship.

The problem, however, is that the Patriots have grown, as well. New England has maintained the intensity that fueled an undefeated regular season and the Pats realize how close they are to making history.

You can bet the Patriots will be just as eager to pounce on the Giants as they were in that season finale. And that's what will make them so tough to handle a second time around.

CHAPTER 1 WYANDANCH, STRONG ISLAND

SMART !!!

FORGET THE G500 I NEED ONE OF THIS JOINTS !

SOURCE

FOR THE SNEAKERHEADS

K.R.E.A.M.

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KICKS RULE EVERYTHING AROUND ME !!!

Throwback of the week ya'll
coca cola always made some ill commercials
and this one put tyrese on the map

nvironmental-friendly Jordans

Michael Jordan has decided to do the world a favor and create environmental-friendly Jordans. The limited edition pairs will only be available in 23 stores at a cost of $230 release date of 2-23-2008

BE KIND REWIND

Release Date: January 23rd 2008
Writer/Director: Michel Gondy (Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, Science of Sleep)
Cast: Jack Black, Mos Def, Danny Glover, Melonie Diaz, Mia Farrow
The Buzz: Michel Gondry’s twisted comic tale of the magic of filmmaking. Jack Black plays Jerry, a junkyard worker who inadvertently causes his brain to become magnetized, leading to the unintentional destruction of all the movies in his friend’s (Mos Def) video rental store. In order to keep the store’s one loyal customer, an elderly lady with a tenuous grasp on reality, the pair re-create a long line of films, putting themselves and their townspeople into it. They become the biggest stars in their neighborhood. Rewind was originally scheduled for release in December 2007, but was pushed back to January. It is likely that the film was pushed back so that it can premiere at the Sundance Film Festival. Gondry’s Science of Sleep and Human Nature also premiered at Sundance in 2002 and 2006 respectfully.






Mos Def is not only a dope artist but a good actor as well.. props to Mos !!!

REBEL TO AMERICA !!!!

XXL 100th Issue Cover

throwback

MOBB DEEP



This song was on the sunset park soundtrack back in 1996.
the movie was about a white school teacher taking over a talented, but undisciplined black high school basketball team and turning it into a winning team. dope movie !!!

SOOO FLY

this nike ad is soo fly I just had to post it...

JAY-Z & APPLE ??

check this shit out

07 RAP-UP !!

SKILLZ