Take It Off

As I muddled through the many various topics I could write about, I thought about something. I figured, how many of you women out here reading this post have thought about songs that you could "perform" to? Don't front, don't act like you've never thought about dancing for your boo, in the privacy of your (or his, or the hotel) room. It's cool...I ain't mad about it. I enjoy a good private dance too...9 times outta 10, it's gonna lead to somethin that will benefit you in the end.

Now coming up with this list was pretty easy actually. The first song that popped into my head was the below: I mean, seriously, listening to this song, you already got instructions. LOL



Pimp C just tells you off bat:

"Take it off bitch, bend over lemme see
if you lookin for a trill type nigga lemme be it."

And if you do that right, you bound to get yours in before you know it. But don't just get up there and think that because you got this song on, and somethin real scandalous, that we gone up and start bangin. (Well, we will, but you know..lol). Make sure you, "work somethin, twerk somethin".

And for the fellas, don't get psychotic and start humpin as soon as she start dancin. Let her make her way over to ya. It'll be worth the wait. If you lookin for some other suggestions to get her outta her shell and onto a make shift pole in the crib, look down below (not in ya pants, but at the list...lol):

50 Cent - Ayo Technology: Here's a bangin visual for you ladies if you want some pointers on how to work a pole. LOL

Jeremih - Birthday Sex: A great way to show the man you love, just how MUCH you love him on his birthday.

The Dream - Lemme See The Booty: Here is for you lap dancing gurls. I know you know what I'm talkin about. Or maybe you wanna do more than dance in that lap.

Crime Mob - Rock Yo Hips: If you one of those ladies that like to gyrate outta control, here is the theme song for you. Maybe this should be your starter song to get ya clothes off.

Ludacris - Splash Waterfalls I suggest this be your ending song right before you relax and let it gooooooooooo! SAY IT!

Lil Wayne feat Bobby V. - Mrs. Officer: Take notes ladies....ideas for after you go in for the kill.

I know this is different from the norm, but I am an equal opportunist, and the strippers should get their just do. We can't leave them out, cause they have provided us men with quality hours spent in shake junts, bachelor parties, and the like. Don't be afraid to show your man how you can work it behind closed doors....after all, we love a lady in the streets and a freak in the sheets. YUUU-WEH!!!!

R.I.P. Baby Girl

As I was listening to my Pandora station, tryin to get a topic for my new post, this song came on, and I instantly had an epiphany (not Chrisette Michele style..lol)



This was one of the many Aaliyah songs that I loved, simply because even though Aaliyah wasn't the greatest artist vocally, but she brought her own Detroit style to the table. (not to mention, she looks DAYUM good in a 2 split skirt). Even though her beginnings started off with that scandalous pedophilic musical mastermind R'rah Kelly, she eventually bloomed into her own, and realized that the girly look was gonna take her farther in the business than the "thug misses" look ever would. (and I agree...leave that to Da Brat..lol).

Aaliyah's life was taken way before her time shoulda been gone, but honestly I guess that's not really my decision to make. She gave us 3 good to great albums before her untimely passing, but if given the chance, I bet that she had a lot more to offer the world. Aaliyah paved the way for such folks like Ciara and Teyana Taylor...but I betcha that if she was still alive, that she woulda been blowin them to pieces. Some of my favorites by the Baby Girl herself are listed below (and low key, I still bump some of them to this day. lol)

Back and Forth- The first single from her first CD "Age Ain't Nothin But a Number". This was the song that introduced us to the female protege of R'rah.

Street Thing- This wasn't a mainstream hit, but it was a banger. Loved the feeling she put into it.

Age Ain't Nothin But a Number- The title track from her 1st cd that let folks know that even though she may be young, she still know how to get down.

One in a Million- A re-used title with a bangin beat and different words. The title track from her second CD: this was the beginning of a Timbo era.

If Your Girl Only Knew- The first single released from the second CD. Probably was the theme song for all those fly girls back in the day. LOL

We Need a Resolution- First track from her self-titled and last CD. She really came wit it. Gotta love the Timbo beat.

I Care 4 U- Love the sincerity in this video. She vows to make things all better after a broken relationship. Fellas, how many of us are lookin for someone like that?

I Don't Wanna Be- From the Romeo Must Die Soundtrack....acting was pretty bad, but the song knocks tho!

There were plenty of others that could and should be mentioned here, but if I listed all of the songs that banged throughout her career, we'd be here all day. I know that you guys got more to list, but these are the ones that stood out to me. The world is missing an angel, but she's in Heaven right now performing for those people up there now.

R.I.P. Aaliyah

Who Does It Better? (pt 2)

This is the second part of the two part series on who did it better in the 90s, cause we all know that music today ain't what it used to be back then. Today's post is gonna be about the guy groups that showed up and showed out during the times when music really inspired our hearts and heads during our growin up days.

This was a bit harder to choose, because during the 90s, there was more of an influx of guy groups as opposed to girl groups. I'm not sure if it was in the water or somethin, but it seems that folks decided that they wanted to up and form a singing group. There were plenty of groups to choose from, but the ones that I'm choosing were some of my favorites from back in the day, aaaannnnnnnnnd, this is my blog, so chew on that! lol. But as always, feel free to comment on some of your own.

First up at bat: we're gonna start off with that 4 guy group from Philly: Boyz II Men. These guys were pretty much a spinoff of Bell Biv Devoe (who in turn was a spinoff of New Edition...lol). They had a fresh sound to them different from many of the groups that came out in the early 90s, and being that they were part of the "East Coast Family" (which comprised of them, Another Bad Creation, and BBD...how, I'm not sure how that happened..lol), they had a hit. Their first hit was probably their best known fast song Motownphilly:

After that, it was all slow songs for them. They romanced you with On Bended Knee and I'll Make Love to You, but showed you they had a bad side with Uhh Ahh. I'm sure that still gets play with the older heads...especially the
remix.

Next we're gonna move from Philly to Baltimore: home of the Ravens, the Wire, and Dru Hill. They crept up slowly on the R&B tip, but when people got wind of their self-titled first CD, it was/still a banger to this day. A few of their bangers were In My Bed, April Showers, All Alone, and These Are the Times....but nothing, and I mean NOTHING that they put out can ever top this one:

I remember this one being played at parties, at the crib, in the car driving down the street...you never found ONE person who said they didn't like this song!

Now we gotta take it to K-Ci, JoJo, DeVante, and Mr. Dalvin...otherwise known as Jodeci. Not only did they bring out some bangin hits, but they also started trends as well (how many folks remember the Jodeci boots...I never had any, but I know PLENTY o folks that did, lol). Either way, I could go on and on about their music, because they always produced a quality CD. From their very first CD entitled "Forever My Lady", they always gave you nice and mushy, with a side of nasty. One of my favorites from them was this song right here:

They were talkin about she was the "natural high" and that they didn't wanna let go of her. I think that may have been where Raheem got his idea for "Love Drug". *Kanye shrug*. Some other bangers that Jodeci put out there was Forever My Lady, Come and Talk to Me, I'm Still Waiting, and Love U 4 Life.

And to wrap it up, since part 1 ended with the Bad Girls of the Bad Boys Family, it's only fitting that I end this post with their counterparts: 112. 112 definitely came out the box rockin with their self-titled CD producing such hits like Cupid and Only You. But they had those that slipped through the cracks like Pleasure and Pain, and Now That We're Done. Their next LP, Room 112, showed us that they had grown up a little bit with Anywhere

and Love You Like I Did. But in all honesty, Part III was probably their best one (with the 1st one in a CLOSE second), because I felt that you could listen to this one from beginning to end. With that smooth kick from Q, Mike, Slim, Daron, then onto Player, and ending it with Sweet Love...they def brought it!

So now we have it, we have the Girls vs. the Guys....who you think did it better?

WTF? You Mean that's ALL?!

OK...I'm sittin here listenin to music on the iPod and it hit me as to what I want to post about today. In a previous post Another Level, I mentioned about "My Paradise" from Blackstreet's second album, Another Level. The song is hella tight...and I wish that it wasn't just an interlude, but you gotta take it for what it is.



Now I know we all have songs that we bump from different cds that as soon as you start to get all the way into it, it cuts off. This isht irritates the snot outta me because I know I feel like they shoulda put a little more time into the track and made it more than just 2 mins or a minute and a half. It irritates me the most when I'm sangin along to the track, and just as you all into it, the joint is DUN!

But you know what though, I'm thinkin that it took them quite some time to put that together, and to make greatness out of the short amount of time the song is playing, so for that, I can't knock their hustle. But dammit, I need some more time outta these joints besides the 4 seconds that they give you in between the intro music and it fading to the next song. Sometimes, they just do it for a little humor in the cd. I enjoy those too...

I'm sure yall can feel me on this one right? But I guess the interlude will never fade away because most times it can be a great album filler. Here are some great interludes from over the years:

112 - Q, Mike Slim, Daron: from their Part III CD. One of the best in the game. OneTweezy did it with this one.

Dr. Dre - $20 Sack Pyramid This was one of the most ignant interludes to date, but it STILL is off the chains!

Alicia Keys - Never Felt This Way A great rendition of the original by Brian McKnight, but I'm not sure as to why she cut the song in half. lol

TLC - Sexy Interlude This one had me crackin up the first time I heard it. Maybe it was cus I was 13 at the time. LOL

What We Gone Do is take you back, way back, back into Time!

Today's post is gonna be dedicated to a group that got their start from the mind of a musical genius: Teddy Riley. They wowed us with their first self titled cd, and with the modification of the group, they took us to "Another Level". This is about Blackstreet:



This is and always will be one of the greats that they were known for from that cd. "Don't Leave" was hot, because not only did it have a sick beat to it, but the way that Chauncey and em was sangin that track, you'da thought that the girl was leaving the sound booth never to return again. This was definitely one of those songs that you could have on repeat, because you knew that if you was feelin it, then you wanted to hear it again.

Blackstreet definitely blessed our ears with some great hits...spanning over 4 different CDs. At times, they were thought to be a modern day Guy (due to Teddy Riley being the brainiac behind the entire operation). Their first cd was a banger to me, but in all actuality, I was stuck on Another Level. It was one of those that got madd rotation in the car, on the cd player on the way to school, at the crib; anywhere. Matter fact, it still gets rotation to this day. The list below are a few of my favorites from this group from all 4 cds and a hawt remix as well.

No Diggety: A collabo between Teddy Riley and Dr. Dre. Can't go wrong with that combination. Not to mention, Queen Pen was at the height of her 15 mins of fame at that point too.

My Paradise: One of the best interludes ever IMO. I think this shoulda been a full song. Hmmm..thoughts for another post.

Before I Let You Go: One of the bangers of the first CD. Real romantic and stuff. Definitely good for a "get int the mood" cd.

Deep: Here is their real nasty side. They brought it real hard core with this one.

I Get So Lonely (remix): Even though this was a Janet song, they still brought another flavor to it.

Booti Call: Taken from the old school music, but with an up to date 90's new jack swing. I'm sure all folks was bumpin this.

I think that Blackstreet was one of those groups from the 90s that made their impact on R&B as a whole...but you know they had great beginnings given that Teddy Riley had already made his step into the music world with Guy. So it was almost a given that they were gonna have some sort of success.

Holler If Ya Hear Me!

This morning's post is gonna be dedicated to one of the more known rappers. Mr. Tupac Amaru Shakur. Pac def had a sick flow wit it...some think that he was a bit overrated with it, but IMO, he didn't have a lot of bells and whistles to his flow. He just told it how it was. It's a shame that he had to die the way he did. I think that he was one of those who could have made his legacy greater than what it was.



No More Pain, from the All Eyez on Me release, was one of those tracks that had the lyrics to keep you intrigued in it, but also had a sick beat with it...from the creative brain of Mr. Devonte Swing (from Jodeci). Wasn't too fast, but still gave you the chance to nod your head while bumpin in the whip. He had just joined wit Dr. Dre at Death Row, and now he was a member of the "West Siiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiide!"




What's all you niggaz das jealous
Pull your gun out and blast
I tell them niggas to open fire
I murder dat ass and disappear before the cops come runnin
My glock spittin rounds niggas fallin down clutchin their stomachs
It's WEST SIDE Death Row
Thug niggaz on the rise
Bustas shot me 5 times
REAL niggas don't die

If you think about it...he just gave a shout out (sort of) to Biggie and his crew and the beef that's goin on at the time between Biggie and Pac. I think besides the gang wars, that was the biggest most publicized beef ever. But eh...

Brenda's Got a Baby: I know we all remember this track. Made the country aware of teen pregnancy.

Outlaw: Not a highly publicized song, but it still got madd play in the whip when Me Against the World came out.

Dear Mama: How many of you had this as the ringtone for your Moms on your cell phone at some point? lol

Hail Mary: From the last bangin Pac CD Makaveli...after that, it all went downhill

I Get Around: The first "playeristic" song...back when Pac was still kickin it with the Digital Underground. LOL

Hit Em Up: This was Pac's rebuttal to Biggie's attack at him. He came real raw and uncut with it. Personally, I think Pac took it with this one.

I know I left a lot of good Pac songs off the list, but feel free to add your faves to the list.

Empowering Friday

Today, after reading about President Obama winning the Nobel Peace Prize, I decided that I would dedicate today's post to him. Well not necessarily directly at him, but musically, I would dedicate it to him via musical tracks that taught us to build ourselves up, and not tear each other down. This type of thinking brings more positive thought and hope to the world, which is the focal point of President Obama's foreign policy.

I wanna take it back old school and introduce this post off with prolly the most "infamous" song sang: "We Are the World".

I remember as a young kid, watching this video and seeing all the great superstars of the day from Luther Vandross, to Diana Ross, Daryl Hall (from Hall and Oates), and Lionel Richie. It was written by the late Michael Jackson (R.I.P.) and this song was dedicated to all of the starving children of South Africa. Even in today's times, this song could still apply to some country that is suffering from malnourishment.

"You Will Know" by Black Men United, or BMU for short, was the men's empowerment song. We needed this song as death to the Black Man was growing rampant, and the issue needed to be addressed. Who better to do it than a collaboration of greats being lead by the great Quincy Jones? If anyone can put together a song to catch the eye of the nation, it would be someone who's worked with such greats as Luther Vandross, Mariah Carey, Babyface, Tamia etc.


Now the women's version HAS to be "I'm Every Woman". Chaka Khan let women know that they were to be respected because "it's all in her". I think that women still silently bump this song for some uplifting words....fellas we better watch out. They ain't playin!

All my old school hip hop heads will remember my next one. Self-Destruction had to be one of the most remembered joints from the 80s dealing with violence and the downfall of the African American race.

KRS-1 and others decided that it was time to speak up about this after a young kid was killed at a concert due to senseless violence. "Self Destruction...we headed for self-destruction". They were right...people shoulda listened back then.

"We're All in the Same Gang" addressed the same issue, except centralized it due to gang violence. Big names like Dr. Dre, Michel'le, Hammer, Above the Law and others wanted to get the folks together on the West part of hte country and form the West Coast All-Stars to try to reach out to those participating in gang activity to try to get them to come together instead of takin each other out. Didn't necessarily work too well in their favor, but the song was still bangin! LOL


The last one is dedicated to our newly honored President: Mariah Carey's "Hero". Even if you listen to the words in the song, they describe exactly what he's goin through tryin to bring this country out of a recession while re-establish the United States' position in the world.
"It's a long road
When you face the world alone
No one reaches out a hand
For you to hold
You can find love
If you search within yourself
And the emptiness you felt
Will disappear

And then a hero comes along
With the strength to carry on
And you cast your fears aside
And you know you can survive
So when you feel like hope is gone
Look inside you and be strong
And you'll finally see the truth
That a hero lies in you"

Once again, congrats again to President Obama! You've travelled a long dark road alone, and now the fruits of your labor are starting to be noticed!

Trendy Songs You Hate to Love

OK...it's almost 7 a.m. on Monday morning, and I really feel like I want to discuss this in some depth. Being one who will always ride that music from the 90s and even EARLY 2000s could run circles around this crap that we listen to these days, prompted me to post about songs that you give side eyes to in the public eye, but yet and still find yourself tappin your foot to in your car or at the crib. Maybe it's the beat, or maybe it's the silliness of the lyrics...iono. But either way, before you realize it, that song has made its way into your rotation on the sneak tip, and you don't know how.

Let's start off with the latest trendsetter: the infamous "LOL/:-)" by Trey Songz.

I'm not sure how Trey got this one off the ground, but coupled with the popularity of Twitter, now it became a household staple. I mean...seriously? WTH? "Shawty sent a twit pic, sayin come and get this. LOL :) LOL :)" I think Trey had to be smokin some serious sticky to come up with this one. The teeny boppers went in for it the moment that it came out. Me on the other hand...not so much. Only after hearing it EVERYWHERE in DC did I become one of the zombie heads of this song. I still feel like I lose more and more brain cells everytime I listen to this song though. LOL

Next on the list: "Stanky Leg" by the GS Boyz

Now I must admit, this was a catchy dance, and normally those dances that look the silliest are the ones that are the most popular. Not really sure why, maybe our people like lookin stupid....but if that's the case, then we may as well put on blackface and sooper white lips and dance around for Massa. The strange thing about this is that this isn't a hard dance to learn. Put your leg out (doesn't matter which one), and just shake it like you're having a seizure, and that's it. WTF? What ever happened to those dances that required that you have some sort of rhythm? I guess we've fallen into the realm of the Rhythmless Nation (remember that from In Living Color? lol)

Now let's move on to the next annoying ass catchy song: "You're a Jerk" by the New Boyz:

Who gets a kick off someone callin them a jerk? I know I don't...but then again, I guess I grew up in a time where we had some sense. But the song itself is kinda hot tho. Funny thing is this, when I was working with some teens from my church, I found myself doin the jerk with them. They were kinda shocked cause they ain't think that Mr. D had it in em. Had to show em how "old school" do it. LOL. Either way, the lyrics to this song are the worst dot com, but it's the beat that catches you and reels you in for the score.

Last but definitely not least, we got the trendiest song of em all; the one that was so popular that spinoffs popped up left and right, and it still outlasted ALL of the spinoffs: "Crank That Superman" by Soulja Boy Tell Em.
Soulja Boy - Crank That

This song became like the unofficial anthem of the hip hop nation. The dance became a must play at all parties, clubs, bar mitzvahs and the like. If you didn't know how to "Crank That", then you were considered a lame, and nobody wanted to hang with you. I dunno how Soulja Boy did it, but because of this song, we were learned to Crank that Spiderman (which by the way I saw used in a stepshow by my chapter brothers, and it was hot the way they used it), the Lion King, the Lawn Mower, the Old Man, and countless others with no point to them. lol. For that alone, I think that Soulja Boy earned the "Pointless song of the Decade" award from me.

Upon first hearing, these songs irritated the shit outta me, but once you hear them over and over again, you can't help but be mindlessly tappin your foot and hummin the beat to yourself while going about your day. Not to mention, it doesn't help that at every turn, I have to deal with some teenage crony blastin it on their iPod, or wailing it out while walkin down the street. I wish that it wasn't like this, but unfortunately, music will get worse before it gets better.

Who Does It Better? (pt 1)

This is goin to be a two part series on who did it better in the 90s, cause we all know that music today ain't what it used to be back then. Today's post is gonna be about the girl groups that showed up and showed out during the times when music really inspired our hearts and heads during our growin up days.

Starting out the gate is TLC. I know we all remember their inaugural CD "Ooooh...on the TLC Tip!" with hits such as "Ain't Too Proud to Beg",

and then they came back hard with "What About Your Friends". Then they showed that they could slow down the joint and get romantic with "Baby, Baby, Baby," But on the real, I think they will always be known for their second CD "CrazySexyCool". They matured between their first CD and this one, proving that they could go from child-like innocence to mature and sexy. Their first hit from this CD "Creep" is still a banger (and in all honesty, the entire CD is)...and I'm sure everyone remembers the dance from the video (I know I do..lol). But the two songs that go the hardest on that CD were "Red Light Special" and "Sumthin' Wicked This Way Comes". The reason I say this is because while they show that sexy side of their trio, but they keep it real with the issues plaguing society. It's a shame that they had to lose a member of their family to a car accident. (RIP LeftEye).

Next we'll go to SWV. This group is always, and will always been known for the song that probably saw many a sexual playlist - "Weak". I think probably every household in America had at least ONE tape that had that song on there...lol. They showed they could give you upbeat tempo with "I'm So Into You" that would have you tappin ya foot, but then slow it down real nasty like with "Downtown". I'm sure every dude within pubetic ages was tryin to find out if that was the way to love. LMAO! I really love how they took their own song, and remade it into a faster song, and both of em are still bangin. We know how remixes tend to do. (another post for another day). Next up was "New Beginning". Now don't shoot me (and this is my joint!), but this CD wasn't as great as I expected it to be. I mean they had some bangers such as "Fine Time", "Use Your Heart", and "When This Feeling", but all in all, it was just eh. But they redeemed themselves with their final LP "Release Some Tension". They decided to bring it all out workin with such greats as Diddy and Missy. I think that they brought it all to the table to end their illustrious career with, such as "Can We"


I can't forget about Xscape now. Even though they didn't have the popularity of the two aforementioned groups, but they put out quality CDs. There was never a CD that was bad. First started with "Hummin' Comin' at 'Cha", this CD introduced the group with the hit "Just Kickin It".

Inspired folks to kick off ya shoes and relax ya feet...party on down to the Xscape beat. I know I did. "Tonight" was slow it down and lets get into the groove song. Another great one for a lets get the mood started list. Their second one "Off the Hook" wasn't as great...but still a good one. Then comes the mature "Traces of My Lipstick". This was a CD full of ballads as opposed to the upbeat style that we were used to. In my opinion, this was a good transition for them, but then again, with the writings of the great Kandi Burress, I can see why it worked for them. My condolences for the loss she has suffered in the past couple of days.

And to round off the girl groups....of course I can't forget my Bad Girls: Total. I know my music heads woulda cut my head off for forgettin them. Nobody can ever forget when they came out with their first self-titled CD featuring the hit "No One Else". But my joint always was, and always is "Kissing You"

Their next album "Kima, Keisha, & Pam" let the whole world know that they were the Bad Girls of the Bad Boy Family, and they were not to be effed with. They came hard from beginning to end, and real talk, that CD still could get rotation in the whip. I recommend this to everyone to peep out, just for a reminder of what they brought to the table.

There are plenty more girl groups that I didn't mention in this blog, and feel free to mention them when commenting...but these are just a few that I really got into when I was growin up. Lemme know whatcha think!