Big_Mike_V's Blog

about me

Location: Brossard, QC
Blogging Since: November 01, 2008
Last Post: June 19, 2010
Total Posts: 68

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My '08 on AA

Posted December 30th, 2008 at 04:05pm

I’d just like to take the time to tell you all that the past 3 months have been great.

Re-joining this network got me the following:

1- humor in your blogs

2- new friends

3- new people with whom I can share ideas and opinions

4- people who see eye-to-eye with my hobbies and beliefs

5- I was able to assist others in their times of need, or at least try to make someone feel better

6- hot women, who actually don’t use their outer beauty as “license to be a snob”

7- and just generally great people

8- non-Asian women who appreciate the Asian man, regardless of what society deems us.

9- I can vent/rant and people will actually listen and provide their own 2 cents.

Without you guys, ’08 might have been a complete waste for me.

Shouts to my '08 BLOG MOB!

PNC – a.k.a WoW-girl…you kick buttox…why can’t all girls be as articulate, unselfish, communicative, verbose, entertaining, intelligent, technically-savvy, talented, caring, and available when friends need help? Well, I guess if the were, then you wouldn’t be “PNC”…Hope ’09 brings you better luck and some changes to your situation.

Peri – My fellow True-school hip hop/Bruce Lee disciple.

A perfect example that not all muscle-men/boxers are dumb jocks, club-bouncing posers, nor shallow minded. This guy is pretty well put together, but he doesn’t parade shirtless/speedo-clad photos of himself, unlike other guys on AA. We are the EPMD of AA!

Ennie – OMG…poor girl…stalked by countless degenerates, one after another. Well, at least you have your admirers, lol…Thanks for sharing your stories with us. They are entertaining! I liked your blog about the girl getting off the bus…you stuck it to “the man” and I love it.

Aycee – I hope ’09 brings you the man you’ve been looking for. There are plenty of nice and single guys out there, but they are a) afraid to approach you or b) timing is bad.

You just need to be in the right place at the right time. And don’t be shy and turn them away. As well, please…NO CRANK DAT dancing! This will only attract douche-bags. I know u were drunk, but still…

Vunny – your blogs rock too…I often can’t tell whether or not they are fictional/factual, but nonetheless, I love them! Hope ’09 brings you the “dream proposal”. It’s very possible, as such guys still exist…but, they are afraid to do such things, as they might come off “un-cool” or “not thuggish enough”. But there will be one guy who will screw whatever people think about him, and go after you in full-romance mode. You are also very talented and have a voice ot die for…so u can always sing the guy into submission so that he’ll go out with you :)

Annagator - It's nice to see that you're doing ok now. Holler if u need more advice. Some guys are indeed bastards and need to be taught a lesson. Always stand up for yourself and never let people walk over you. There are some real lousy people out there, but keep in mind, it's people like that who remind us why we should be good. They actually make me want to be a better person. But agian, this doesn't excuse them for their stupidities.

NTJ – Individuality! Thanks for giving the Yella-Fellas a chance and not following the crowd. But be forewarned…

The Asian man comes in 2 complete extremes…

A) kind, generous, honorable, honest, hard-working, loving, faithful, intelligent, gallant, and can be the best friend that you’ll ever find. You buy him a rose, he’ll buy you 10.

on the other hand, he can also be

b) dangerous, back-stabbing, untrustworthy, cocky, boastful, racist, abusive, careless, thoughtless, snobby, close-minded, conniving, conceited, and the most terrible thing that you’ve ever encountered. Scum comes in every color, so be careful!

In my immediate area, it is very hard to find an Asian guy who’s just in between. Either we’re really good, or we really suck. And this is one reason that makes it hard for us to get dates. Women usually want a nice guy, but he can’t be TOO nice. So again, thanks for being appreciative of what we have to offer. I’m a hybrid, btw…option “A” until someone crosses the line too many times;)

Latina – you encounter a lot of losers too, just like Ennie does. Same thing, don’t let them mess with you! Arriba La Raza!

If I left someone out, I’ll get you next time for sure!

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

4 Comments |

The One time where my parents and I see "eye to eye" - my longest rant yet

Posted December 26th, 2008 at 09:39pm

As you grew up, you got used to hearing your parents b—ch and complain about what you’re wearing, who you’re going out with, the music you listen to, your friends, your hairdo, etc…simply cause it’s not something on which they grew up.

As a young one, I had a hi-top fade. Yes, Kid’n’Play style. And when it was trimmed down, I had the spikey hair WAY before every asian kid of today wore it.

Back then, they all had their hair parted down the middle. So, yeah, my folks didn’t like it.

Unlike other non-Flip Asian kids, I liked hiphop. As soon as it was introduced to me, I fell in love. For every possible mood, it suited me….depressed, fun/joyful, party, pissed, wanna kick soneone’s behind, my parents not understanding me, fighting the power/protest… u name it. As an artsy kid, I knew a good thing when I saw it and was able to indentify with it, when other Asians around me thought I was on some crack. They were all into their dance/techno and other qweer/sappy stuff.

Not only was hip hop a creative/social movement, it was also a means of discovery. Before the sampling laws came in, rappers and dj’s would create new beats by sampling old, yet awesome, music that I’ve never seen/heard. If I heard a riff that interested me, I’d be interested in finding the original tune, from where it came. This way, I’d discover new acts, new worlds, and new influences. One thing would lead to another.

And back then, we had no internet, thus no napster, amazon, or ebay . No mp3’s…nothing. And the distribution for hiphop albums was limited, as the big companies didn’t really invest a lot into promoting them.

I’d either have to make trips to NY, in order to get the good stuff, or pay ridiculous “import” prices for them.

But u know what? It was worth it! I don’t regret spending one penny on any of my sh-t!

My parents thought that I was wasting money, and still do. They never saw anything redeeming in hip hop and probably never will.

Today, I must say that hip hop is doing very little to prove my parents wrong.

I was too young to have originally witnessed WildStyle or Grandmaster Flash and The Furious 5, so here is my own hip hop timeline.

I went from the non-nonsense of Run DMC + Rakim + and LL Cool J, to the playfulness of Jazzy Jeff and The Fresh Prince + Beastie Boys + Slick Rick + Heavy D, as well, then onto the “boom-bap” underground sounds of KRS-One + Gangstarr + EPMD + 3^rd Bass, along with the conscious-rappers Ice-T, Public Enemy, A Tribe Called Quest, just to name a few… The 90’s ushered in Gangsta rap…as negative as it was, it still kept true to the form…it was danceable, included dark humor, and the beats were incredible…different, but still unique and creative.

For me, hip hop came to its highest point of creativity in early-to-mid-90’s, when we were introduced to Das Efx, Fu-Schnickens, Cypress Hill, Dr.Dre, Snoop, Naughty By Nature, Onyx, 2pac, Wu-Tang Clan, and Biggie. Times had changed. It wasn’t about flashiness or fancy-dancing anymore…just pure lyrics and beats. For once, we got to hear raw talent in the mainstream. There was no sign of any “whackness” on the pop-charts! No Hammer, Vanilla Ice, or any crap like that!

At this point, I felt that it was in good hands…no worries.

Then came the 9/11 of hip hop…2pac and Biggie. Someone had realized that these 2 were way too powerful and that hip hop revolved around them. You couldn’t find one magazine or hip hop show not mentioning Pac and Biggie…They, indeed, had raised the bar on hiphop, making it hard for anyone whack to enter the industry. And this was bad for business, therefore someone decided to get rid of them.

Then, Ol Dirty Bastard went to prison, thus taking Wu-Tang out of the mix.

Dr.Dre left Death Row records, in order to escape their gangsta-politics. Snoop went to “No-Limit Records” which, to me, started the whole generic “Dirty-South” electronic sound. Fredro Starr of Onyx became an actor. The “powers” even went as far as trying to replace 2pac with DMX and Ja Rule. No success, therefore, hiphop took a back seat to boy and girl bands. Biggie was replaced by Jay-Z. Although, he’s not too bad, he ain’t Biggie and will never be. He just lacks the raw/natural talent. I don't forsee anyone still bumping "Can I get a What What?" in another 10 years.

Lo and behold, there was hope with Eminem bursting onto the scene. It was a breath of fresh air. New ideas, pure talent, Dr.Dre’s beats, dark humor, bashing of pop-stars and teen-idols…wow! Awesome! Even his protégé, 50 cent, showed some promise with “In Da Club”. But as soon as these two cats started to launch clothing labels, vitamin water, and other products unrelated to hip hop (as opposed to concentrating on their own records) it started to show in their music...my “hopes” went down. Missy Elliot is still a force to be reckoned with, why isn’t anyone giving her the respect? Respect M.E., dammit!

At this point, the record execs could not afford to search and promote a “next one”….so they decided to crap on every skilled MC out there and push some generic no-namers without talent. Why? Cause they’re easier to replace. After the lesson of Pac and Biggie, they could not afford to push another “future legend”.

This is why we’re stuck with Lil Wayne, Soulja Boy, Hurricane Chris, and G-Unit.

If any of them die tomorrow, another will easily slip into their place and carry on. It’s business.

What if the NBA decided that they couldn’t afford to pay the likes of Dwayne Wade or LeBron James, and then decided to go with kids who can’t even dribble, let alone shoot? That’s what happened to hip hop. They are not looking for the next star…they’re looking for the next gimmick…a quick buck. And when his/her 15 minutes of fame are over…NEXT!

I cannot put the blame on the “artists”. If Lil’ Wayne is making money, providing for his family, so be it. If someone paid ME mad-cash to wear a stupid hat and rap about “ho’s and cars”, I’d do it in a heartbeat. I don’t even blame the radio stations, nor do I blame MTV…they’re definitely part of the problem, but their influence only goes so far.. The record companies are doing whatever they can, in order to get the most for the least, as would any other business. The blame is on the people actually stupid enough to buy their crap!

Ya, I said it… If I came knocking on your door to sell you a box of horse manure-cookies, would you buy it? Nobody’s pushing it down your throat...you have the choice!

In the 80’s, did you EVER see anyone dress up as Boy George or Prince, on a regular day? They wore rather outrageous outfits, but nobody took it seriously…it was entertainment. Nothing but that.

If fans wanted better, they’d have it. Nas tried to make a push with “Hip Hop is Dead”.

Snoop Dogg went back to the basic/simple hip hop on “Blue Carpet Treatment”. Why weren’t those albums 20x platinum? Yeah, a lot of people downloaded their albums for free, but saleswise…they barely made a dent on the charts.

Wake up, people. This is not a question of East Coast vs. West Coast vs. South. This is not about old-school vs. new school. It’s a simple matter of creative/smart/innovative vs. stupid.

Even though a lot of talented minds still exist out there, nobody is supporting them. We’re all waiting on the BET/MTV stamp of approval, before we put down 10$ for their cd’s. Reality check… it starts with you. Support the up-and-comers, by copping their mixtapes. Support the old-cats, by coming out to their shows and getting their new releases.

Promote. How did hip hop grow to begin with? Word of mouth is the most powerful means. Remember when people used to copy albums with their tape decks and pass them onto their buddies? That’s how hip hop grew. Hip hop did not need any top 40-radio airplay, in order to make it all the way around the world. No MTV. No internet. It was all us. Now that, my friend, is underground sh!t! It was a movement! We didn't wait for MTV to tell us what was good about Rob Base or Queen Latifah. We took it upon ourselves!

And if you hear something, non-mainstream, that you really enjoy, buy it DAMMIT!

Think about it…you can talk Biggie, Pac, Rakim, Run-DMC, or Big L all you want….but in 10 years, today’s kids will be adults. Today’s new school will become their old school. The last thing we need is a VH1 documentary on the “old-school legends” Soulja Boy, Lil’ Jon, Yung Joc, G-Unit, or Yin Yang Twinz.

It ain’t even as simple as “stop listening to hip hop”….RnB and Rock have already taken the same route. How did we go from Michael Jackson, Boyz II Men, Keith Sweat, Aaliyah, and TLC to Keshia Shante, Akon, and Beyonce (All My Single Ladies! All Single Ladies!)… And what about rock…from The Beatles, Billy Idol, AC/DC, Weezer, and Nirvana, to Good Charlotte, Miley Cyrus, and Bodyrockers??? And Pussycat Dolls…wtf? If I wanna see scantily-clad women dancing, I’ll buy porn instead. Stop pushing them as a music-act! I want real musicians!

Thanks for listening.

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