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Davey D's FNV Newsletter
In Today's Issue:
April 23 2001

*Cheney & NYPD Crack Down on Hip Hop
*DMC Speaks Out
*Jacko Hooks Up w/ Swiss Beats
*Kobe Gets Dropped
*Shaq Beings Superfriends
*Puff's Statement
*Shyne Speaks Out
Simmons Wants More NOI Security



Send comments, questions and concerns to
mailto:kingdave@sirius.com
The FNV Newsletter
written by Davey D
http://www.daveyd.com
http://www.rapstation.com

========================

It appears that the Cheney's in particular Lynn Cheney who is wife to the vice president is coming down hard on Hip Hop. A recent report by the Federal Trade Commission has shown that the record industry has done very little to curtail the marketing of explicit recordings to underage audiences. These concerns were first raised a bout a year and a half ago when the FTC held hearings and concluded that the movie, video game and music business were aggressively peddling products that carried adult ratings. The FTC recommended that these companies police themselves or risk facing government sanctions and mandates. The movie and video game manufactures have since stepped up to the plate and improved themselves. Unfortunately there has been little progress with the recording industry.

The RIAA has defending the follow up studies by noting that they offer clean versions of their explicit material. They also noted that their current labeling system was effective. They cited reports from the FTC which noted that 75% of the parents surveyed found the recording industry useful and effective. However, the recent studies show that 55 music recordings with explicit content were all targeted to children under 17. :Lynn Cheney again took swipes at rap star Eminem and his current popularity and appeal to underage youth.

In a recent interview Liberman's chief of staff told reporters that the former Vice Presidential candidate Senator Joseph Liberman is dissatisfied with the recording industry and that has promised to introduce a bill giving the FTC authority to fine companies that market adult material to minors.

This latest observations comes at the heels of a troubling report from the New York City police department's which has announced that they intend to monitor clubs, concerts and other nightlife activities involving Hip Hop. According to police officials, there is a culture of violence in the Hip Hop world. The NYPD's gang intelligence unit has begun compiling dossiers on rappers and others within the music industry with criminal histories. The main impetus is to protect both the artists who are found to be frequent targets of violence as well as patrons and fans of who frequent the establishments attended by the artists. Many are calling this latest salvo in the war against Hip Hop 'racial profiling at its worst'. They claim its a violation of all sorts of constitutional rights. Police officials deny such charges. However, they did state that at the current time it would be impossible to ignore the slew of recent violent actions and activities which have involvement in the music industry as the only common denominator.

This whole scenario spells big trouble. The police in recent days have already stepped forth and officially classified organizations like the Zulu Nation and the Black Panthers as gangs. Such identification leave members open to police surveillance and other profiling activities.

DMC of the famed duo Run DMC rolled through the other day with the Baka Boyz and let the Bay Area know what was happening in his world. As of late there have been a lot of rumors circulating that suggested that Darryl McDaniels was not getting along with his long time partner Joseph Simmons aka DJ Run. Some of the stories suggested that DMC was no longer a part of the group. Well during the interview he laid some of those rumors to rest. He noted that he and Run are still partners and there is no beef. However, he said the pair had creative differences. DMC explained that Run is the type of person who wants to get on the mic and completely dominate emcees. He's competitive and wants to be number one. DMC felt that type of approach toward Hip Hop is something he has out grown.

"I have evolved and now want to educate, inspire and motivate people", he said. "I want to get people thinking". He went on to add that he likened himself to Bob Dylan and John Lennon in the sense that he was more focused on life affirming topics and his own inner peace and wanted to have that reflected in his music. "I want my music to appeal to a 7 or 70 year old person". During the conversation, DMC did not sound like the DMC of old. His voice sounded strained as if it was cracking.

DMC noted that many people listening to him may not understand where he's coming from and what has brought about this change in thinking, hence he has written a book that breaks it down. The book is titled 'King of Rock: Respect, Responsibility and Life with Run DMC'. He has also completed his solo project called 'Checks Thugs & Rock-n-Roll'. His first single is called 'Cadillac Cars'. DMC acknowledge that there are fans who will listen to his new music and try to categorize it as something that is not 'Hip Hop'. He countered that notion by explaining that folks who say that are limiting their thinking and understanding. "Hip Hop is all about self expression and I have grown over the past 18 years", he said.

DMC concluded by telling listeners he has started his own record label which he has tentatively titled 'Darryl's Music Company'. He described the label as one that will be universal and is currently looking for all sorts of acts ranging from Hip Hop to country. If anyone is interested in getting down with DMC call him at 201-531-1214

First things first... There's never a dull moment in the world of Hip Hop. To start we have Michael Jackson the King of Pop hooking up with Swiss Beats to do a song. This apparently will appear on Swiss Beats new album 'G.E.T.T.O Stories'. It's an interesting turn of events when you consider that Jackson had approach Dr Dre to do some songs and was unceremoniously turned down. Nowadays Swiss Beats is offering up some beats for Mr Jackson to sing over but according to EUR Web, Michael hasn't made a final decision as to what he will put on his long awaited album.

Bad news for Hip Hop wanna be Kobe Bryant. He has been dropped from his record label Columbia music. The man who is known by many as the 'LA Ball Hog' tried to hog the mic and make it happen with a new album that was scheduled to be released last month, but record executives found his latest offering of music pretty darn bad and decided he should call it a day and let him go. So folks that's it.. No more Kobe at least on Sony, but who knows, with all his money he might go out and do like teammate Shaquille O'Neal and start his own record label.

Speaking of Shaq, he's been making a bit of noise with with his upcoming project titled Shaquille O'Neal Presents His Superfriends. Its the first project on his newly signed deal with Trauma Records which will distribute his record label TWIsM. The album which has a late June release date will feature all sorts of folks including, Mos Def, Talib Kweli, Twista, Common, Black Thought, Black Rob, Peter Gunz, Lord Tariq, Jayo Felony, WC, Ludacris, 112, Angie Stone and Nate Dogg to name a few. If Shaq comes to the table with tight beats, there's no way he can go wrong with such a stellar line up. I guess if Kobe passed the ball a little more often, Shaq could've added him to the line up or at least picked up Kobe's album and distributed it..

Everyone's favorite Hip Hop duo Sean 'P-Diddy' Combs and Shyne are back in the news again. As you know, Puff Diddy was arrested the other day for making an illegal turn on a scooter and driving with a suspended license while trying to stay out the limelight and keep a low profile in Miami Beach. Initially everyone was ready to jump on P-Diddy and accuse him of being irresponsible, but his spokesperson released this statement regarding the incident;
"Mr. Combs' license has been reinstated and this matter is being resolved by Miami officials now. Due to the Easter holiday paperwork regarding the validity of Mr. Combs' license had not reached the national database thus resulting in this misunderstanding. This was simple traffic ticket that has been blown out of proportion."

An interesting article has been circulating around the Internet which shows the difference in treatment for Hip Hop artists versus rock and country singers.. While Puff was arrested and told to appear in court for illegally riding a scooter, country singer Andy Griggs and his partner Kevin Weaver had charges dropped after they were caught stealing an ambulance and taking it for a joyride.. Both incidents took place in the state of Florida. Griggs agreed to do a benefit concert for the hospital... You can make what you want out of this scenario, I know of people who have done some time for joyriding.. It's considered stealing in many instances. To take an ambulance only compounds the problem..

Puff's protege Shyne was busy releasing statements of his own. As you know he was convicted for a number of charges related to a night club shooting which took place in December of 99. Shyne is currently looking at 15-25 years in jail. He was due to be sentenced later this month, but now things have been moved back to June pending some last minute filings and additional paper work. Shyne's statement came in the form of a handwritten note which read as follows;


"Dear America,

I apologize. I apologize 4 da tears that have fallen from my mother's and grandmother's tired eyes. I apologize to the victims, I didn't cause your pain but you can place your blame on my shoulders.... I apologize to all those who cry for me... All those who believe in me... All those who believe me when I say all I tried to do was defend myself... And finally I apologize to my generation for not being there to lead u... Not being there to help u - help you escape da harsh realities I sung about which you face everyday... I apologize. I thank God for life and hope... Hope I find in all of you who continue to support me and all of you who continue to believe in me and believe me. God bless you all.

Shyne"

Shyne's mother asked supporters to send letter to Judge Charles Solomon asking for leniency. He has been trying to stay positive and has been praying a lot. We'll see what happens when the sentencing situation comes down in June. It should also be noted that Shyne's spiritual advisor Hip Hop Minister Conrad Muhammed announced that he will be holding a public meeting with industry executives next week [April 30th] to encourage them to work with young artists and be more responsible for them so they don't fall into the same pitfalls as Shyne.

I caught up with rap mogul Russell Simmons and asked him what he thought about the recent situations surrounding Puffy and Jay-Z who was arrested last week and charged with felony gun possession. Simmons noted that things have gotten to a point where he feels that everyone must be refocused. He noted that he is in the process of working with senior members of the Nation of Islam to establish a responsible and effective security force for Hip Hop artists. Many of the problems that artists have been going through are related to altercations or racial profiling incidents that could've been prevented with effective security teams. Simmons noted that he and others have been working on this over the past few months and are fully committed to making this happen.. In fact when I was speaking to him he was waiting for the start of a meeting with his team of people who are helping launch this plan.

Simmons emphatically noted that the NOI has garnered the trust and respect of the community. He noted that their presence in has often had a calming effect in some very volatile situations and the fact that they aggressively work with many who have been disenfranchised and written off is an added plus... The NOI has been very effective in helping turn lives around. The NOI stepping up their involvement and presence within Hip Hop should come as no surprise. Plenty of artists already use their security teams. In addition the NOI has been responsible for intervening and curtailing some very troubling situations within Hip Hop including the so called East-West Coast War. The fact that there are NOI in every major city allows for such a security team to be used nationally if things are co-ordinated properly. Simmons seemed animated and determined to make this a shining example for other to embrace. We'll keep you posted on the outcome of this project.

Send comments, questions and concerns to
mailto:kingdave@sirius.com
The FNV Newsletter
written by Davey D
http://www.daveyd.com
http://www.rapstation.com
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FNV April 13 2001

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