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Davey D's FNV Newsletter
In Today's Issue: December 13 2000
*IT'S A COUP D'TAT FOR BUSH!
*RAWKUS ARTIST CLEARS UP RUMORS
*NO NEW NWA ALBUM
*OZ SOUNDTRACK TO HELP PRISONERS
*THIRD EYE MOVEMENT RELEASES COMPILATION
Send comments, questions and concerns to Davey D
mailto:kingdave@sirius.com
The FNV Newsletter
written by Davey D
http://www.daveyd.com
http://www.rapstation.com
c 2000
All Rights Reserved
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Yesterday's apparent victory for Texas Governor George Bush over Vice President Al Gore should be sending shock waves throughout the Hip Hop community. Not because you like Gore ands can't stand Bush. That in a nutshell is irrelevant. We should be shocked and concerned because of the manner in which things went down. That's what concerns me most. We kept hearing disturbing stories over and over again about African American voters being 'selectively' jammed up by the police and prevented from voting. We saw way too many scenarios that didn't add up about irregular ballots, unprepared precincts, broken machines, folks being placed on lists saying they were felons when they weren't, people's names removed from the voter lists, lost votes, arbitrary rulings etc. It was some crazy stuff that should've inflamed us enough to wanna go out and make sure we prevent that from ever going down again. The bottom line is that if anything Election 2000 indicated that all of us have a responsibility to be vigorously involved in staying abreast of political happenings and we can no longer stand idly and just assume things will work out..
I say all this in the back drop of watching disappointing, pitiful and dismal turnouts for yesterday's San Francisco supervisor run off elections. I sat there in dismay, scratching my head wondering what the hell was going on in the minds of those who stayed home and didn't vote after seeing how our lack of involvement can have long lasting effects..In a city plagued with out of control rents, dot com invasions and other issues of concern, how could folks stay away from the polls when they had opportunity to make changes both pro and con.. I'm baffled by this.. Don't people realize Elections Do Matter???
 The one thing I saw with the Bush victory is that homeboy had people in place every step of the way who had his back and were looking out for his best interest. For example, the Supreme Court decisions that first stopped the vote count and then later handed victory to Bush by running out the clock, came from those conservative judges who were given seats during the Reagan-Bush era 10-15 years ago. Back in those days there were many people who thought voting was a waste of time and hence they never took things seriously. They never showed up to the polls, didn't involve themselves in both local and national politics and did not see how the ability of a conservative President to appoint Supreme Court justices who relected his philosphy could come back and bite them 10 years down the line. Those who were politically involved took advantage of the apathy and slowly but surely started putting the pieces and people in place. It was a judge here, a county supervisor there, an election official over there etc..One day we woke up and found that the deck was stacked. All the key players who could've made a difference and offered some redress were siding with Bush.. And why not? they had been appointed by his dad and his dad's predecessor Ronald Regan or they were rolling with his political party. Hence when 'unfair' or troubling practices arose we suddenly discovered that we didn't have any viable recourse. Mostly disturbing was the lack of attention on behalf of both Gore & Bush's teams about the rampant disenfranchisement of African American voters. We heard about swinging chads, dimpled chads but not too much about brothas and sistas being dissed at the polls.
To me, it reminded me of what we have go through when we report incidents of police brutality. You head on down to the station house, lodge a complaint and sit back and watch the police investigate the police. The end result is usually dissatisfaction and lack of confidence in the process that should deliver us a solution to a big problem. Far too often we stop fighting and just kind of go along and accept things even when they are bad.. We can no longer afford to do this. That's part of the plan..to keep us collectively discouraged and disillusioned with a system that all of us pay taxes for.. I'm gonna end this as I have over the past couple of months.. You simply can not ignore politics. To do so is political in itself.. Get in where you fit in and make a difference.. There is and will continue to be a lot at stake..
IF YOU DON'T WORK THE POLITICS-
THE POLITICS WILL DEFINITELY WORK YOU!
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 This is in response to all the RUMORS, NEWS ARTICLES, PHONE CALLS, ETC!!! I gave Rawkus every thing a real mc could deliver, lyrics, beats, style, and dedication. I created the underground buzz it takes to move records by staying in the lab, doing shows (more promotional than paid), doing radio/ club promotions for the label, and involving myself with other group projects. My singles, which featured some of the best MCs in hip-hop, came and went without the proper push, and they still managed to move in NY, the States and Overseas. (Call FAT BEATS!!!) I did all of that on my own with minimal support from the label. After my project continuously got pushed back, without any explanation or guidance, I began to feel as if the foundation I helped to build didn&Mac226;t prioritize my album that has been finished for almost a year. There were decisions made without my best interest in consideration. So in my best interest I decided to depart from the long waiting list of projects that Rawkus had on their plate. I wish Rawkus well and all my former label-mates success. PLEASE NOTE: THIS DIDN&Mac226;T STOP SHIT!!! THERE&Mac226;S MORE S-DOUBLE TO COME!!! I AIN&Mac226;T DEAD YET!!!
Shabaam Sahdeeq
 Snoop Dogg rolled through the Bay Area last week to promote his new album 'The Last Meal'. He wound up hanging out at the station and actually doing a full 4 hour air shift. For those who don't know, Snoop has been making a name for himself as a radio host on KKBT in LA with his syndicated radio show. Hence Snoop came across as as seasoned pro when he cracked the mics at KMEL. He spent a lot of time fielding calls and answering all the questions that have been plaguing folks. For example, he was asked how he felt about Suge Knight and Death Row Record prematurely releasing his album for free download on their website. Snoop was dismissive and stated that its apparent that Suge is his biggest fan. He went so far as to thank him on the air for being such a big fan. The sense I'm gathering is that Death Row's controversial tactic may have actually helped bring more attention to Snoop album..
Snoop also spoke about the possibilities of putting together a tour that would bring groups from the east coast, west coast and the South all on one stage. Thus far he is meeting with Jay-Z and Outkast to see about the three going out on tour together. Snoop is also hard at work with his new record label. He noted that Tray Dee and Goldie Loc of the Eastsidaz will be doing solo albums. There is also talk about the possibility of Snoop putting out Richie Rich who has what a new song out called 'I Ain't Gonna Do' which is shaping up to be a Bay Area anthem. Lastly with regards to the recent lawsuit launched by Columbia pictures against Snoop's protege group Doggy's Angels, Snoop's label issued a statement noting that the cover art used by the Snoop's group was nothing more then a parody that pokes fun at American Pop Culture. They also maintained that it doesn't and shouldn't cause confusion to consumers. C'mon Columbia Pictures-lighten up.. you guys already made your millions..
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* Bad news for NWA fans. The highly anticipated reunion album has been shelved indefinitely after the group recorded a few tracks that Dr Dre described as disappointing. The fact that the group's various members have pending projects means that it will be sometime before they can all free up their schedules and return to return to the studio and start recording again. Dre told MTV News that Ice Cube is working on a special effects movie and that Snoop who is replacing Eazy E, will be out promoting his album. As for Dre, he is starting work with some of his new artists. I wonder if that includes Rakim who he recently signed?..
While folks lament the fact that NWA won't be recording anytime soon, folks will realize just how good they are after listening to the QB Finest remake of the Straight Outta Compton. The allstar super group which features artists like Nas, Capone, Mobb Deep, Tragedy, MC Shan, Marley Marl, Nature, Cormega and Millennium Thug kicked off their soon to be release album with a remake of the Hip Hop classic Da Bridge. The song was cool so it was great enthusiasm that we came to the show last week to debut their new joint Straight Outta Queensbridge. Maybe its a west coast thing, but listeners were disappointed, especially when we played the original NWA cut right afterwards. As one caller succinctly put it, there are some classics that you just don't touch.. However, with no NWA album anywhere in sight, folks will have to replay the old albums or look for today's groups to deliver Hip Hop remakes.
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*As folks get ready for this winter's continuation of HBO's hit TV series OZ, they will have a soundtrack to accompany them. A few months back we had noted that Avatar Records which put together the Panther movie soundtrack was in the process of putting together a stellar line up of artists including, Snoop Dogg, Method Man, Cypress Hill, Pharoahe Monch, Lord Jamar of Brand Nubian, Kurupt, Nate Dogg, Master P, Krazie Bone, Three 6 Mafia, Kool G Rap and Talib Kweli for the OZ compilation. The album is due out the second week in January 2001. The company decided to take things a step further by donating 10 thousand dollars to the Innocence Project which is headed by former OJ defense attorney Barry Scheck. This project has been responsible for securing the release of numerous prisoners throughout the country after proving their innocence through DNA testing.
Avatar records marks the third or fourth record label over the past two years aggressively attack and address the issue of the Prison Industrial Complex. Last year Raptivism records released a landmark album called 'No More Prisons' where proceeds went to aid the Prison Moratorium Project. That was soon followed by Frank Sosa's Unbound Project which focused on the situation surrounding the case of Mumia Abdul Jamal. A couple of months ago Suge Knight and Death Row Records announced that proceeds from their album 'Too Gangsta For The Radio' would be used to help secure lawyers and legal resources for those who feel they were incarcerated unjustly. Hopefully the attention such labels and recording artists are giving to this topic makes a difference in curbing this run away system of incarceration over rehabilitation.
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*Props go out to San Francisco's Third Eye Movement for the release of their new compilation album called 'Third Eye Movement Presents Soundscapes From The Struggle'. Its been released on their newly founded label called MindzEye Entertainment. For folks who are unfamiliar, Third Eye Movement was one of the leading Hip Hop organizations here in the Bay that helped led the fight against California's infamous Prop 21 [Juvenile Crime Bill]. They had made a mark for themselves by using Hip Hop as a tool to help bring about social change. Over the past couple of years, it has not been unusual to see these cats show with as many as 500 people and shut down a business or spark up a rally. People are still talking how earlier this year, the group came through with close to 300 people and surrounded the Hilton Hotel in downtown San Francisco and shut it down. The owner of the Hotel chain had apparently contributed a bunch of money in support of Prop 21. The evening news casts showed all these people chanting in unison a customized version to the popular rhyme featured in the Sugar Hill Gang classic 'Rapper's Delight'.
Hotel Motel --And The Hilton
If you start a war on youth
You ain't gonna win!
The youth then entered the hotel lobby while still holding up raised fists and began chanting a customized version of the chorus to DMX's 'Ruff Ryder's Anthem'.
Stop! Drop! People Gonna Rise To the Top!
ooh! ooh! Prop 21's Gotta To Go!
Stop! Drop! People Gonna Rise To the Top!
ooh ooh Prop 21's Gotta To Go!
Currently the group is canvassing the streets of North Oakland, monitoring police activity and gathering testimony from residents who feel they have been unfairly profiled.
As for their new album..It's a compilation of songs from various artists both within Third Eye Movement and from around the country. Each song is interspersed with commentary, news clips and interviews about youth issues and the role Third Eye Movement is playing in trying to reshape the Bay Area's political landscape in what they perceive as a growing police state. For folks who are in the Bay Area this Holiday season [Dec 22] they can join Third Eye Movement for their upcoming album release party at 1515 Webster Street in downtown Oakland. There will be performances from artist on the compilation including Renaissance, Duece, Eclipse and Sayyadena from the Bay Area.There will also be special performances from Jahi of Cleveland , Ohio and Luminous Flux of Philadelphia who are also featured on the album.. For more information drop them an email at
mailto:thirdeye_movement@hotmail.com or give them a call at 415-951-4844 ext 23
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