That's getting me down. Giving the freedom to my last generation. Jazzing around. What is jazz to me? What is a wildflower? Steaming in a forest grove. A painting. A picture. A bird and deers flattening fists on 52nd Street. What is a beat? A sweet black, brown, and beige. A rhapsody. Free as the wind in a restless breeze. A counter melody. A masterful stroke. What is jazz to me? The beginning and the end. Of an endless affair. A warm something else. Pellenball. And Miles used to play. When Adam Lee. Adam Lee's were in. The weather was for the birds. Jazzing around by the late, great Soon-Chi Ali. Welcome to the Qumran Report. May the peace and blessings of the life-giving creative spirit be upon you and upon your family. My name is Melvin Ishmael Johnson, and I'm in the studio with my co-host, Earlene Anthony. This week we will be talking about It's a Young People's World with actor and community activist, Lee Shaw, and some outstanding young peoples from the downtown Los Angeles Job Corps. But first, I'm on the line with Shirley Isis Simmons, one of the driving forces of the original Soul Vision. Shirley, welcome to the Qumran Report. Thank you. Thank you very much. Now, Shirley, Soon-Chi had a message for young people. He used to tell me often that he wanted Soul Vision to be an organization that helped guide young people. Can you talk about the message he was trying to get out to our young people? Yes, yes. Well, first and foremost, message. Stay in school. And big, bold red letters. He also wanted them to, you know, do your homework. He mentions that in his song, Homeboy, which is on that same tape you played. And the reason I say that, it means more than just do your homework. It means sit there and study and research our history, our black history. Soon-Chi used to say, our history is rich, man. And he used to tell that to the kids. And he did our kids to study about our people and what they did that was great. And when they looked inside their books, their history books, they could pick out someone, he would say, pick out someone that you want to be like. And you can be anybody you want to be. The next Langston Hughes. The next Miles Davis. The next Maya Angelou. The next Serena Williams, sister, you know? Yeah. He was pinpointing names for them. Two, I think, examples. Mm-hmm. Okay. Now, again, Soon-Chi was a high school teacher also. And look, what is the status of Soul Vision? That Soul Vision right now is still alive. Soon-Chi might have passed on, but Soul Vision, thanks to you and people like Tanook and myself and Donovan Clark, some of the old Soul Vision from back... Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. 20 years ago, some of us went back. The doors are still open. We're still performing. Thanks to you again, Melvin, as I say. We perform every other Sunday also here in Englewood at the Performers' Corners. Out of all the hundreds of people, I might say, that came through Soul Vision's door, at least their root core are still there, the 15 poets. Okay. Now, look, you've got an event coming up this Saturday, September 15, up in Englewood. Can you tell us about it? Yes, I can. It's a new play titled The Clos Alabama Review. It's about the 1940s jazz legendaries, the greats, Chad Calloway, Billie Holiday, Sarah Vaughan, recreating all these greats from the past coming alive again. The Performers' Corner, which is located at 213, before Hardy Street in Englewood, is where the event will be Saturday night, this weekend, September the 15th, at 8 p.m. Yeah. And there are tickets still available. And that's right off La Brea. Yeah, I know where that's at. Yes. All right, Cheryl. Now, one other little quick thing. What was the motivation for the song Homeboy, which we will be playing in a minute, by Sanjay Ali? Okay. I remember working on Homeboy. I remember. And him telling me, Shirley, I wrote this poem sitting in the classroom. And that's one of the reasons why he wrote it. He just sat in the classroom and looked around, looked around at the kids, at the class. And basically, that's what it's about. The students, their pains, their problems, their sadness, their families, their ups and their downs, life itself. And Homeboy is what he came up with. Okay. All right, Shirley, always great to talk to you. Thank you. Thank you, Shirley. And I look forward to seeing you Saturday. Fantastic. Thank you. God bless you. Now, at this time, I'd like to play the song Homeboy by Sanjay Ali. Homeboy. Homeboy. Homeboy. Homeboy. Homeboy. Brothers, there's only one blood. Come on. There ain't no sense in us trampling on the stones. It's us down, down to the bone. Blood is thick. Waters were known well. Cousins were kept apart. Mothers were often memories. Fathers were not favorites on the farm. For he could do some harm. He could wreck them out to skin. For he, brothers, could dream. Your mama ain't no saint. Your daddy died in a chasm. You're a gallows shrink. But your uncle, Dr. King, did have a dream, my brother. And what is your real excuse? Why can't you study your lessons and stay in school? Why can't you study your lessons and stay in school? School. Free love and sex ain't nothing but a game. Don't never last. Try hope. Take a chance on love. Register to vote. Money ain't everything. But you could buy her a ring. Listen to little blackbird sing. Boy, boy, boy. Boy, boy, boy. Boy, boy, boy. Boy, boy, boy. Boy, boy, boy. Boy, boy, boy. Boy, boy, boy. Boy, boy, boy. Boy, boy, boy. Boy, boy, boy. Boy, boy, boy. Boy, boy, boy. Boy, boy, boy. Boy, boy, boy. Boy, boy, boy. Boy, boy, boy. Boy, boy, boy. Boy, boy, boy. Boy, boy, boy. Boy, boy, boy. Boy, boy, boy. Boy, boy, boy. Boy, boy, boy. Boy, boy, boy. Boy, boy, boy. Boy, boy, boy. Boy, boy, boy. Boy, boy, boy. Boy, boy, boy. Boy, boy, boy. Boy, boy, boy. Boy, boy, boy. Boy, boy, boy. Your granddad had the blackened boots You know what I'm saying Cause it ain't but one blood It's called fight for freedom Now Homeboy Love, love, love Homeboy Fight for freedom Homeboy Your mama ain't no saint Your daddy died in yesterday's freedom jazz dance Your sister's on the streets Doing it with whomever she meets Everybody you know is weak Don't be strong Women are free Ain't nobody in school Homeboy Listen to me I know who you are I see you up close And from afar Listen to a poet Tell you of a race that used to be strong Now ain't no poet singing And what's going on Homeboy We used to work for a living A nickel was a nickel A dime a dime Homeboy Waters were deep Rivers rose But nobody froze when it got cold Homeboy Take time out And think of who you really are Don't die off a dozen and one demons Live for your mama and daddy too They had trouble and so will you But live and let live Take all of your history and dream Take all of your history and dream Take all of your history and dream Okay, Homeboy by Sunji Ali. Now I'm delighted to have with us in the studio some wonderful individuals from the Los Angeles Job Corps. First we have one of the supervisors there, Shea Roberts. Hello. Colin Clark. Hello. Kevin Ross. Hello. Chris Flowers. How's it going? Nasheed Peters. How you doing? And from drama stage, we have Andrea Ross and activist Lee Shaw. Good evening. Good to be here. Okay, first of all, let's start off. Shea, can you tell us exactly what is the Los Angeles Job Corps? Sure. The Los Angeles Job Corps is a program funded by the Department of Labor that offers job training and placement. They also offer GED and school training. They also offer GED and school training as well, as well as other social development programs. They serve 735 students annually and we have about 300 or so on campus. There's free room and board, three meals a day. Now what are some of the training programs and job placement programs? Some of the programs that we have are office admin, we have computer repair program, we have an LVN program, culinary, early education, visual communication, automotive, to name just a few. Okay. Now let's go into some of the, from some of the young men. So what is the biggest challenge in training and finding jobs for young people? If you want to touch, any of you want to touch on that? I would have to say more than likely right now it would be the economy's shift. That would probably be the biggest thing for the youth right now getting jobs because, you know, you have some people at our age that are college level, may have a bachelor's, may have a BA, you know, and you're working at Starbucks, you know, you go into college and you take your time out to follow your dream, whatever that may be, either doctor, LVN, RN, and you might not make it there because the field right now of everyone is just, you know, you're going to be there for a long time. Everyone is just on the top notch competitiveness and it's pretty much, it's like a fight to get nowhere. Okay. Yeah. Okay. Now that's Chris Flowers speaking. And now Chris, can you also tell me, do the job training take in consideration the high tech internet world we live in? Yes, I believe it actually does. A lot of the stuff that we deal with in Job Corps itself as a building, they kind of get you used to the fact that technology is around you and you're going to have to be more savvy with it. So, you know, when you run into it out in the real world, you know, you're not, you know, behind on time. So basically they offer a lot of different ways for you to enjoy technology as it is. Okay. And Chris, let's start with you. Can you tell us a little about yourself and then we move around the table with Shay and Kevin? Okay. So, starting with my name, my name is Chanson Aldrin Youth and Flowers. I was actually born in Hollywood. It was pretty weird because, you know, in 92, I believe, we moved out of LA, Los Angeles. We moved to Big Bear and we were there for a while. Then moved to Rialto, which is Inland Empire, you know. Stayed there, picked up a lot of cool trades, you know, just a lot of skills. I actually became a hobby collector. I just collect hobbies. A hobby collector? Yeah, it's pretty weird. It is a weird thing. Some of them, a poet, play the guitar. I like rapping. Hip hop is my thing. It's my heart. Motorcycles, street bikes, speed, that's my thing. I snowboard too, which is weird, you know. Most people wouldn't see it, but that's me. All together, I just... I just feel like me as a person, I always try to strive to, you know, become as good as I can at anything I pick up. What are some of your career goals? When I'm done with Job Corps, I'm actually going to college to become an architect. Oh, wonderful. Yeah, that's my serious long-term goal. My short-term goal, just to play around with... I have a friend of mine that's actually trying to get me to go model, which is a funny weird thing, yeah. It's like something I'm looking forward to, but not really pushing towards it. You know, if it happens, it happens. If it doesn't, it doesn't. That's cool. Okay. Shay, can you tell us a little about yourself? Sure. I'm born and raised in Los Angeles, California. I lived in New York City for about 12 years. I spent about five or six years working for an organization called the Women's Project Theatre. And I was a visiting artist there where we taught students to... Well, they read a play and they wrote their own play. Well, they read a play and they wrote their own play. They wrote their own work, which was performed at an off-Broadway theatre space at the end of the school year. And I would visit them, my students, for an hour a week for 10 to 12 weeks. And I had always wanted to spend more time with them, more involved in their journey as... sort of... They're new artists, you know, and I would just sort of spend an hour with them. And we would put up the show. And I might hear from them again. And I might hear from them again. And I wouldn't hear much from them at all throughout the school year. And it's just been a real pleasure to be a part of Job Corps because I get to see them for hours a day in the evening program. And spend more time with them and help them develop their technique. And it's been a real pleasure. Okay. Rasheed. Oh, my name is... Nasheed. Yeah. Yes, my name is Nasheed Peters. I'm originally from Compton, California. And basically, music... I've... I've never been in music like really into it until I got into Job Corps. Actually, three months ago, my buddies right here, Willie Mack, Carlin, Chance, they got me to open up and just go for it. So I've been rapping for about four months other than singing in the shower. I mean, I've been singing for like a month. All right. So... So this is like a great experience for me. I'm happy to be here at Skid Row Records. Yeah. Yes. Okay. Thank you. Kevin. Calvin. Calvin. How you doing? This is Willie Calvin Ross. I'm a young gentleman from... I was born in Lancaster, but I was raised in Englewood, Santa. You know, I started Job Corps about three months ago. I... I go there. I... I went to... My plan for Job Corps is to get my GED and to get a certificate in culinary arts, you know, going to being a sous chef and then work on, you know, long-term goal, I had to be a executive chef. I love music. It's my life. It's my heart. It's my... You know, I breathe it. I breathe music notes, you know. I rap. I sing. I play instruments. I love live instrumenting. I play music. I love live instrumentation, but I also do produce. You know, I try to get a little of everything, just like my man Chris. You know, everything I put my hand at, I just want to be, you know, you know, good enough, you know. Yeah, I think that's pretty much it right there. Okay. Great. Colin. How you doing? My name's Carlin Clark. For short, you can call me Macca. I go to Job Corps. I plan to finish Job Corps with the... With the... Job Corps with the certificate with TCU, Transportation Communications Union. I'm an artist, a rap artist, entertainer, performer, et cetera. Yeah, I just love music myself, you know. Along with these other gentlemen, you know, it's just... I breathe it. Okay. Okay. Wonderful. Glad to have you here. Thank you. Andrea, you want to say something about the... Yeah, well, my hat's off to all the young people here in the studio. A lady of words myself. I'm a poet, a rapper, a writer. Children's literature, I've written six books, so I truly understand where they're coming from. And to be able to take hold of your goals and your dreams is something that only one can wish for, but you have to implement it yourself. You got to go for it with gusto. Grab the ring and keep going. Grab the ring and keep rolling the ride, because it's all good. Okay, thank you, Andrea. Okay, now, the next question I want to ask is, how do the arts fit into the overall job training program at the Job Corps? Well, the performing arts program is really still in its embryonic stages right now. I think that, you know, artistic expression involves... It's inherently social... It's inherently social... Sorry. There are inherent social development components. And, of course, analytics are involved. Working in groups, developing one's curiosity, and dealing in conflict resolution are just inherent components to using art as a tool to working, period. And I'm hoping to further develop that as a model. But, as I said, we're still kind of creating it on its feet right now. Okay. All right, now, let's take a little short break for our community calendar, and then we'll come back for our roundtable discussion. This is the community calendar for the month of September. Every Tuesday from 5.30 p.m. to 8.00 p.m., the Veterans Community Theater Workshop is being held. The location is the Vortex 2341 East Olympic Boulevard. This is near the corner of Santa Fe and Olympic. The Metro Bus No. 60 and 66 stops right at the corner. For contact information, 323-850-4436. This Thursday, September the 13th, at 12 noon, the Compassionate Response to Homelessness and Poverty Group is having their September meeting. This is a special event. This is at the United University Church, the Peace Center, which is located on the campus of USC. This is near the corner of Jefferson and Hoover. And you're invited to attend, and we'll be discussing ways and means to help the homeless. On this Saturday, September the 15th, at 8 p.m., there will be a performance of a stage play titled The Cub Alaban Review. It's a revival of legendary jazz singers. The play will be recreating the jazz entertainment that was so popular performance on Central Avenue in Los Angeles back in the 40s and the 50s. The location is the Performance Corner, 214 Hardy Street in Inglewood, California. The tickets are $20. For more information and reservation, call 310-850-4222. 910-0392 or 310-863-6589. And this is the Save the Date. Save the Date. For the Veterans Community Theater Workshop, we'll be performing a stage play entitled Surviving the Nickel. This play is written and directed by Melvin Ishmael Johnson. And the performance will be Sunday, September the 30th, 3 p.m. Location, The Vortex, which is 2341 East Olympic Boulevard, Los Angeles. This is a free event, and all are welcome to attend. For more information on this event, call 323-850-4436. And we have another item. Upcoming guests on the Qumran Report, the Internet radio show. On September the 17th, we're going to have Jessie Bliss, and she's with the Roots and Wings Project. On September the 24th, we're going to have Patty Berman, and she's president of D-Link, which is the downtown Los Angeles Neighborhood Council. Just a reminder, if you have a community event that you would like announced on our show, send the information to DramaStage1 at yahoo.com. Attention, Earline Anthony. Once again, our call-in number for the show is 800-893-9562. Now, back to our host. Hey, thank you, Miss Earline Anthony. Now, we're back in our studio with our guests, and I would like to get into a roundtable discussion of some of the topics that relate to our young people. And joining us for our roundtable discussion would be Lee Shaw and Andrea Ross. The first thing that I want to discuss and throw out here on the roundtable is, is there a generation gap? And who want to pick up on that? Well, I would have to say there is a very large generation gap. Between myself, only 25, and my wife, who is 25. And I think that's a very big thing. And I think that's a very big thing. And I also think that a generation gap is a generation gap. And I also think that a generation gap is a generation gap. And I also think that a generation gap is a generation gap. And I also think that a generation gap is a generation gap. And I also think that a generation gap is a generation gap. And I also think that a generation gap is a generation gap. And I also think that a generation gap is a generation gap. And I also think that a generation gap is a generation gap. And I also think that a generation gap is a generation gap. And I also think that a generation gap is a generation gap. And I also think that a generation gap is a generation gap. And I also think that a generation gap is a generation gap. And I also think that a generation gap is a generation gap. And I also think that a generation gap is a generation gap. it's like as if the wise ones kind of were held back from teaching us their wisdom, their knowledge, giving us their abilities to see with insight or be able to deliver the message from where they were taught to where we are now as young people. So we're pretty much guided by technology and the things around us. For the most part, there's a lot of us young people that are in search of wisdom, in search of knowledge constantly. So that is a good stepping stone right there. But it's not as good as, say, the wisdom that you may have or my mother will have. That's the real root of what knowledge is and where it came from. How it began. So I would say in that point of view, yes, there is a giant, giant. Okay. Anybody else want to pick up on that? Well, I'm really on the maybe I'll call it the other side of the fence. I don't adhere to there being a generation gap. I'm a senior citizen myself. And I've worked with young people all the way from five years old, all the way up to five years old. All the way up until they think they're too cool to even be in a program. And you guys can hear me on that one. But when I work with these young people, they accept me as one of them. And when I work with them, I let them know that I'm not just a teacher. I'm here to learn from them. And they are there to learn from me. And we get along fine. They don't even. You know. Look at my gray hair or my color or anything. We interact just like, you know, I'm just one of them. And they have the utmost respect. They either call me Miss Anthony or Miss Earl. But when they ask a question or whatever, you know, we try to talk about, you know, an answer, satisfactory answer. But really, I'm not of the opinion that there is a generation gap. Maybe. Maybe it's how people just kind of relate to each other. Okay. All right. Lee, what are your thoughts on that? Well, I kind of concur with Mr. Earl. But, again, it's the original thing. You know what I'm saying? It's a different view being in South Central from being in West L.A. You know what I'm saying? We have less to work with down there. People are all preoccupied with self and making money. You know what I'm saying? So the child is neglected. So he grows up. He's not really having no. He respects mom and pop. But he also respects himself and respects those who was instrumental in his life. And that's usually the homeboy. Uh-huh. You know? So we look at, like I say, different areas. You know, like I said, you'll find things in that area different from the things in, say, more affluent area. Okay. Okay. Andrea, what are your thoughts on that? Well, I. I kind of concur with the last two opinions. I myself being, you might say, a senior citizen. But when you see me and when you hear me and what I have to say, most kids do do relate to me. I try to stay up with the times. Some of the great artists of the past, my heroes, Biggie, Tupac, all of those cats that were putting it down before these guys probably came into the world. But it's all relevant because they are the role models. They are the ones that. Got the word out prior to this generation. And they are my role models. I write hip hop. I write gospel music. All genres of music and words. I'm proficient in. And I must say kudos to Shea Roberts and the Los Angeles Job Corps. We did a cabaret night there last week. And it was, as they say, quote unquote, off the hook and the chain. And that's coming from my generation of speaking. But it was a great night. And I look forward to working with you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. the future generation. How about you, Kevin? What do you think about that question dealing with the generation gap? Honestly, I kind of agree with both sides of the argument. You know, what Chance brought out, you know, as far as wisdom and understanding about life, it's definitely like a gap, but like, you know, concurring with the other side of the argument is that I think that there is a bridge between the two. You know, there are some, you know, you can single out certain individuals, however, as a whole compare, you know, compare now to like, older times is way different. People have a certain demeanor, carry themselves differently. Just think totally adverse, even, to how people may have thought, you know, a few decades ago. All right. So I have to agree with both parties. How about you, Nasheen? Yeah, I kind of agree, too, because like, growing up, you got to respect your elders, and talking to you, and you and you, y'all are wisdom. Like, I know back then, you're going to have to respect your elders, because you know it's going to happen. That's right. And I had the same thing. My mom was that way, and if I didn't do that, I knew what was going to happen, and growing up today, looking at kids, they cursing and talking mess, and like, you're only five years old cursing on the bus? Exactly. Exactly. It's ridiculous. Okay. I'm going to have to agree. It is, but then again, it's not a gap in our generations, meaning things change, you know, over the years. Yeah. Negative and positive. Mm-hmm. Like, now she brought up the example of talking back and all that. It's just, it's not something I was raised with, you know? Mm-hmm. I was raised with respect. Mm-hmm. So you guys, you're looking at that next generation. Yeah. See what's happening with you. Yeah. One more thing. When parents are not an instrumental in their children's lives. Exactly. You know, they suffer. Mm-hmm. And, you know, I was talking, we was talking about some people. I see them all the time. Young guys, you know, some of these people's age. And every time I've seen them, they was pushing a stroller. And it's, it's kind of way out to me, you know what I'm saying? Because I don't see this every day. I see one guy, he's walking his daughter to school every morning before he go to work. You know, another guy wherever I see him, if he's getting off the bus, he got a stroller and his little boy with him. You know what I'm saying? And this is the kind of thing, that these young people should do more of. It's kind of, it kind of keeps you, you know, aware of who you are. I'm a father, man. You know, before I'm a homeboy, I'm a father. You know what I'm saying? Before I'm anything else, I'm my kid's father. So I got to be teaching him. Responsibility. You know? Okay. Okay, now what do you think about hip hop? Mostly pop. Positive and negative. Let's talk, let's start with Chris over here. Let's talk a little about, you mentioned hip hop a minute ago. Wow. What a deep conversation, right? Wow. Hip hop, where do we start? Yeah. Hip hop is something that most people say it's a trend. You know, most people see it as that. You know, what's new, what's hot. You know. But for those that do it, don't really see it like that. Someone once asked me, does hip hop have a heart? You know, I say no, even though I'm an MC. You know, I'm a true MC. I do rap, you know. This is rapping, technically. I'm speaking, so it is rap. But the actuality of hip hop being an MC is being able to deliver words far past what, you know, the normal mind can even start to conceive. Um. The depth that it is at right now, it's shallow. You know, the message is lost. It's, you know, it's lost its flame. It's still burning. Somewhere in there, it's still burning. But it has lost the flame of what it used to be. Cats like Nas, you know, Immortal Technique. He's still out there right now. They're still doing their things, but they're not being exalted or recognized like they should be. You know, I don't knock any MC or anyone at this point in time. Because there's a lot of young cats that are coming up, too, that are, that are, they're very well off when it comes to the ability of speech and having the gift of gab on the microphone. When you look at it, what it is right now, it's more trapped in the flash. You know, just that, the stars, the light. You know, it's, it's lost its mind. You really want to put it into a clear view. It's lost its mind. There's a lot of guys out there right now that, you know, I deal with. And industry cats, you know, it's funny how they can persuade your mind, even as an MC, someone that is a deep thinker, to kind of run away from the underground, you know, because the underground is more than likely where everyone started at one point. You know, you always had that first rhyme that you did on that paper that everybody was like, yeah, it's all right, man. It's all right. But change this up right here. Put this verse like this. All right, make your 16s like that. And then you will have something that we can say. It's all right. No, I'm a blooper. No blooper. No blooper. Right now, cats are losing focus of that beginning. Whatever that beginning for them was, they're losing that. They're driving more towards it's flashy. It's what it is without thinking about the consequences of what they're bringing behind them. Everybody wants to follow the trend. If I start sagging, everyone's going to sag, especially if you see me on MTV, BET, 24-7. It's exactly what we humans do. Most of us follow. Then you have a select few of us that are true leaders, that go out and they cast thoughts on other people. How about you, Kevin? What are your thoughts on that? Just basically to reiterate what my brother was elaborating on. Hip-hop is a fad now, to be honest. Truth first, but it's basically a fad now. It being a fad is losing touch of. It's hard because it's just trying to fight along. Basically, it's stay up to date. People come in, follow the fad, and aren't really staying true to what it was really about. Origin of the hip-hop, I believe, is jazz. Real soulful kind of sound. Then people will make those beats and drop some knowledge, some wisdom. Still, I believe there's a balance in between as far as substance. I also believe a lot of hip hop is a way of planning a situation. I also believe a lot of hip hop is a way of planning a situation. iffy because nowadays all we rap about is you know foolishness just to be real with it but like you know you look for underground rappers now you'll find some of the most the realer things you know and also with that thing it's a time and place for everything you know you have party rap and yeah you know all types of different rap but i do think that because it's a big influence on you know african-american youth and i do feel that there should be more you know um emphasis thank you emphasis on um you know um more wisdom you know more substance for someone to really meditate on really build yeah you know actually come you come from it other than just listen to a track just because you know it may sound good but you know it's a lot of filth in it all right uh now she let me hear your thoughts on that hip-hop what's happening with it i actually think uh hip-hop is kind of lost for me like the in terms of like the newest rappers i'm not even gonna sing any names or nothing but like they're not saying much like when i when i listen to rap i i close my eyes and i think about what they're saying because i want to i want to know what they're saying and if they're saying something that's actually real i'm gonna bump that i'm never gonna i'm never gonna put that on my mp3 player never so i'm just i think like like the good rappers right now uh schoolboy q kendrick lamar jay cole that they're actually saying things like something that you actually relate to so yeah man i gotta oh i gotta get up on those i believe she's still alive my wife is still alive yeah i can feel you it's just it's just a fact she's alive because it's international you know mm-hmm you have so much variety of things and what i'm saying is that i'm not saying that i'm not saying that i'm not saying that i'm not saying that i'm not saying that i'm not saying that i'm not saying that i'm not saying that i mean by that different content of lyrics you know i mean you have content you have party you have all types of sorts of things now it's not like back in the 90s i mean no disrespect or anything you know um you know back in the 90s it was just like gangster um the gangster era then moved on to i don't know what now it's just like everything you have everything in one now you So I think she's still here. I think she has a hard chance. Okay. I feel it pumping. Boom, boom, boom, boom. Yeah. We are that hard. You want to say something? I had a question for him. Yeah, go ahead. Because I was kind of confused about this, and I'm still kind of confused. On the East Coast, they say hip-hop, and on the West Coast, they say rap. Is there a difference? Yes, on that subject right there. It's kind of funny because even though the East Coast is the true originators of the metaphor itself, actual hip-hop, you know, I'm Cali, you know, until I rest in my grave. Until my cattle can't roll anymore. Straight up. The rap theory. You know, most cats in New York, they respect some of us out here as MCs, but not a lot of us get that respect because we are not. We are shadowed by, like he said, like Carlin said, the gangster era. And, you know, the gangster era wasn't what people thought it was. You know, most people would go out and look for things like banging on wax or, you know, the red and blue tape, you know, but they didn't look for cats like the original first, first, first, like, Sebo. You know? These guys, even though they were on the rough side of the metaphors and lyrics, they had an exact point. And their metaphors came so clean, so precise that you really had to take out the anger out of it to really understand that it was actual hip hop and not rap. You know, because most people say, okay, you got trunk bass, it's rap. There's no drums in it, you know. There's no real soul, no rhythm. It's just trunk bass, 808, it's out there. So they just instantly categorize it. They categorize it as rap, which that is not what it is. You know, it's actually still hip hop. It's just like Carlin said again, just a different branch of the same heart. Okay, let's go into another subject. You want to say something Andre? Yeah. Okay, let's go into another subject. I want to get your thoughts on the use of the N word. Let's pick up, anybody want to pick up on that? Let's discuss it. The N word. Where do you start with that topic? It's loosely used. And I mean, we're not all ignorant here. We know, you know, the origins and where it arose from. But like, and today, I see it more as like, just another term like bro, bruh, brother, sis, you know, within those guidelines. And still with it, you know, depending on the person using the word, like the connotation, if it's negative or positive. And the majority of the time it is used like in the positive, it's not like meant to be offensive per se. But I don't really have, I mean, not to be, for it to be abused. Okay. Well, look, let me go to Lee. You want to say something on that? When I started my study eight years ago, what got me to study was the use of it. People used it. Yeah. They used it, right? And most young people, they took all the sting out of it. You know, we used to get all puffed up about it. But they didn't, it carried no meaning to them. You know what I'm saying? So now we got, we got blacks calling each other. We got whites calling each other. We got Asians calling each other. Same thing. You know, there's no power like it used to have back in the old days, if you want to say, back in the 16, 17, 18, you know, early 1900s, up to maybe, I don't know, the mid-1900s. The 60s. You know, so I wanted to know what it was about the word that didn't offend them. You know what I'm saying? So when I did, when I did my study, what I did, I had to go back to the 1600s, to when the people came here, when they landed here. You know what I'm saying? And what I found out was the word is synonymous with the word mulatto. There's no difference in the word except the language it came in. Because people could see. They may not have understood it. They may not have understood the whole lot. But they understand that one person went into a room with somebody of the opposite color, and she gave birth to somebody else that was neither one. And nobody, nobody, no biologist, nobody can tell you that I can X out 46 chromosomes, right? Maybe the mother's nose, maybe her hair, right? Maybe the father's lips, you know, the shape of his head. You can't X that out. So these people, they knew. You know what I'm saying? There's nothing different. It's just a language. And that particular word, it's defined in the dictionary right now. It never was no N-I-G-G-E-R. That didn't come out until what, 1913. The word that Webster put in the dictionary was N-E-G-E-R, right? And he said person of African descent. He had nothing about no derogatory, none of that. You know what I'm saying? So what we got was hand-me-down. Crap. Information about it. You know what I'm saying? Yeah, that's all. Just hand-me-down. Okay. Look, before we get into our, too deep into our roundtable discussion, let's start some of our performance. We'll do some live performance and voices from the community. And I want to start off with Andrea Ross. She's going to do a piece called What's Real? Andrea Ross. Thank you, Melvin. On the stage, I'm known as Miss A.D. And I'm formerly out of the NYC. Now I'm coming at you from L.A.'s infamous CPT. And I want to drop a little social commentary. It's a trilogy otherwise known as What's Real? And I am telling you what's real. I ain't telling no lie because it's a day-to-day struggle in the ghetto. Here's why. Man child born to an underage mother. Before he got her name. The little kid, he got a number. At a county office in that welfare line. Mama sits all day for pennies, nickels, quarters, dimes, bored, waiting. Till the whole day is through. Three social workers think she got nothing else to do. They got mad stories told on a thousand and four faces. Futuristic slavery of the minority races. Chained to a system that is bound to fail. But you don't give a damn because your checks in the mail. But it's mental. G-E-N-O side. You know the deal. I ain't telling no lies. I'm strictly telling what's real. The man got a plan. Terminal black mind kill. I ain't telling no lies. I'm simply telling what's real. I'm telling you what's real. Miss A.D. is spelling to Y-O-U and you and you what's real. So check me out. Cause I B-E speaking it. B-E teaching it. B-E preaching it. B-E cause it's so real. I'm telling to you and spelling to Y-O-U what's real. Now check it out. Her child grows up. He want to be a man at the age of nine. A Mac 10 in his hand. He wants to be a man. He wants to be a man. He wants to be a man. He wants to be a man. He wants to be a man. He wants to be a man. He ain't seen his daddy since he was three. Don't even know that fool's name, but they spell it T-R-E-E. The story go, Tree was tall and he was stout. Yoked up, tatted, ripped, knocking enemies out. Devastating on the trigger, twist, pill your caps and you're straight to your grave for your RIP nap. But late one night in that hood of South Park, pop, pop, pop, pop, pop, rang out in the dark. Tree got off a couple, but he was overmatched just like that. His life was snatched. Now his mama's left here. Burying her son, another tragedy yet. Only one of those scandalous tales yet to be revealed. I ain't telling no lies. I'm simply telling what's real and I'm telling you what's real. Miss A.D. is spelling to Y-O-U and you and you just what is real. So peep my game, because I be addressing it, be professing it, be confessing it, be because it's so real. I'm telling to you and spelling to Y-O-U what's real. Look what happened to him now. His childhood is lost. Number one fact. Frontin' gangsta style, he don't know how to act. Instead of games like hide and go seek, gaming was ditchin' school five days a week. He was heated, hangin' out on the block scene with his swag on tight. He tryin' to be mean. He wanna be tough. He wanna be bad and wanna have things that his daddy never had. Rope chains, dope chains, Versace, baton. But where oh where have those simple days gone? Jack and Ellen then chillin', almost killin'. On the run. I ain't telling no lies. I ain't telling no lies. I ain't telling no lies. I ain't telling no lies. I ain't telling no lies. I ain't telling no lies. I ain't telling no lies. I ain't telling no lies. dying he was dying to be. Way back when, he stood one inch from his mama's chin because now his lesson is learned the hard way. He's locked down doing time day by day. Ten years, they stretched him out and gave him ten years. Put them bracelets on him for ten years. He put mama through hell because she was staring at her baby in a jail cell. Ten years till you know how great freedom do feel. I ain't telling why OU no lie. I'm telling why OU was real. That man got a plan. Terminal black mind kill. I ain't telling no lie, people. I'm simply telling what's real. Thank you. Okay, Andrea Ross. And for those who want to get in touch with Andrea for a performance, her email is andreaross1 at yahoo.com. A-N-D-R-E-A R-O-S-S . 1 at yahoo.com. Thank you, Melvin. Okay, let's move to our next performance. Kevin Ross, he's going to do a performance. He's going to do a piece called No Bread. No Bread. It's a brief stage name. It's Nobody. K-N-O apostrophe B-O-D-I-E. There's no deeper meaning that goes into it, but I don't have the time to speak about it. It's a quick summary of the piece. I did this piece after I was home for about two years. It's pretty much how I put it. It's just basically me articulating my thoughts and how I felt about after being homeless. I was homeless for about a year. And that's pretty much it. Just articulate. So it's the type of things that make you go insane and growing pains that reside up in your stomach and propane that ignited in your plumbing. So ashamed for nothing. You know them chains. Just trying to pull you to the ground. But since life's a game, you spring free to score that winning touchdown. It's lunch now, but the heck I'm going to eat? Yeah, I knew how to talk, knew how to articulate, but just felt prudent to not speak low-key. I felt that need that I should probably ask for help, but to nobody's understanding, there was nobody else. Nah, nope. Just me, myself, and I. Yet, if I utter with a reply, I look you dead up in your eye, and the only voice I heard for a while was that one up in my mind, and I disguised my heart's feelings by saying that I was fine. In the midst of this, can't believe that he decides to say bye, dude. I cried too, but as I do, I just continue to ride through. Into now, like the river, only decide to point that finger when looking inside of a mirror. Not an expression if I say I'm from the street. Or games. Sundown, and I still ain't had nothing to eat since yesterday, but faith stays strong. I'm still up on my knees, praying for that better place. My drinking cup was filled with the tears that I wept today. The type of things that make you go insane, and that Novocaine is just holding you from what you wanna. Throwing flames because them enemies just keep coming. Lois Lane keeps running. Can't trust her for nothing. Don't attain to nothing that's going on in this world, but since life's a game, you gotta roll with stamina, so go long, but so long. Dedicated to this journey. Father was over 30, my clothes was forever dirty, and they couldn't figure me out unless I want someone to learn me, and since they didn't understand, they sent me in front of the jury, judging, judging me. And boy, I tell you, it wasn't easy to overcome it, but I knew him, but I had no choice. I had to do it. I had to do it. I had to do it. I had to do it. I had no choice. It was to conquer or to submit, but I knew in myself that this was not for everlast. So I just endured, even though I couldn't predict the forecast. Another day, and I still ain't had nothing to eat. Man, long days. You ain't got nothing to eat. And the only dream I have is the hope of me getting some sleep, because that night, it was clearly evident that you don't know that it's a cold world until you have to face the elements straight up. But at the end of it, I can say I got through it all. Hell, if I drank, I'd probably pour a shot to it all. Now, going through this experience and, you know, finding myself that, you know, pride and lust, two of my knowing defects, and that having enough love, these are my only regrets. Pride and lust, two of my knowing defects, and that having enough love, these are my only, only regrets. Thank you. Thank you. Okay. Kevin Ross. Can you quickly tell us your contact information for those that want to get in touch with you? On Facebook, you can hit me up on Facebook, Calvin Wolf, Calvin with a K, Wolf with an E at the end. You can check me out on Twitter, Live This Music, email Willie Ross, 29 at Yahoo.com. Okay. All right. Let's move on to Colin. He's going to do a piece called Heavy. Colin Clark. Hello. Yeah, I'm a performer. A song called Heavy. I wrote this at a point where there's so much on my head. If you're a thinker, you'll know how I feel. I got so many thoughts trapped inside my head. If I bought them up and threw them, I swear you'd be dead. But you'll never know my thoughts till probably when I'm dead. I feel like JFK. I'm losing my freaking head. I feel like Happy Feet. I'm just too close to the edge. I feel like Kurt Cobain before he touched the meds. I got a master plan. I got a master plan. A wise woman told me if I tried, then I can, which was my grandma cooking wisdom with a pan. I looked up to God. He put the globe into my mouth. I'm not a man. I'm not a man. I'm not a man. I'm not a man. I'm a man. I'm a man. I'm a man. I'm a man. I'm a man. I'm a man. I'm a man. I'm Told him, Lord, it ain't something enough fast enough. He said, it takes a process, Mac, to become the man. I got a lot of problems. I'm talking many grams. But why should I complain if here is where I stand? It's funny how my real ones take place in my fam. This that true talk listeners understand. I am the underdog, and I'm proud of who I am. Listeners, now whisper to yourselves. I'm proud of who I am. I'm proud of who I am. I'm proud of who I am. You may understand, but not the whole world can. Thoughts so heavy. Thoughts so heavy. Thoughts so heavy. They pulling me like gravity. Thoughts so heavy. Thoughts so heavy. Thoughts so heavy. They pulling me like gravity. Thank you. I want to get to Nasheed and then I want to get to Chris to play the song, Nasheed he's going to do a piece called I Just Do It yeah, it's called I Just Do It like you said I wrote this just unleashing everything off my mind and just wrote it off and put it on a piece of paper so I hope you guys like it yes, I am a captain looking for my treasure I feel as though I was on will of fortune looking for that letter dang I've never been a good speller so I will go to the bank and tell the teller that I buy a vial but all that I have is this vial that I will not give it to anyone else in style so, pass back to me, if you can't get there laterally actually I'm never like everybody here made in this factory one of a kind I've been surprised at them all since the start of my time pressure a lot of fat people in a pack you know you can't carry all that weight on your back if you try, you probably get a heart attack and I Nike that I just do it no matter what I keep it moving so, like it or love it I always stay above it shining like a medallion my but like an Italian running just like a stallion like ranking in a army I'm on another level I have nothing to hide you can't get dirt on me even if you had a shovel pop me like a bubble never like my too big to measure I'm so clever now how about this they always talking about nothing Seinfeld, shhh I break the haters down like mad problems but I have no care to say that I'm not a good person I have no care to figure them out so somebody else can try to solve them I get off raw like sushi then go more tough than a T-bone steak this is a mistake for them to always be here and hassle me always trying to take me down and wrestle me but I'm a scholar B I mastered in rapology you haters are on Twitter because you know leader and that's why you follow me thank you okay now yeah thank you for the coming down to the Cone Run report Chris is going to close us out with a piece called Dark Cloud Chris Flowers this is weird right here but um you only got ten seconds music son what you don't understand dark clouds they might bring you pain music But I will be in your heart still Telling you don't look down Don't feast your eyes on the things that are on the ground And if it gets hard to focus When you're traveling almost at the speed of sound And there's no one around