Month: January 2007

If it is true that one should often be cautious in front of people who keep silent all the time, for the good reason that you will barely know what crosses that person s mind or what he/ she actually thinks of you, one should definitely heed the smooth talker.
People who talk too much usually act less. People who spend hours talking are also likely to spread your most intimate secrets and to badmouth you as well. Of course, it is sometimes very useful to voice our opinions, but one shouldn t dedicate his/ her whole time to talking.
There is a specific time for the talk. There is a determinant point during which we should act.
On a little humorous note, I d like to point out that the negative talkers are those who amuse me most. Those people prompt to judge, to criticize, to hate, to misquote, to demean, but take just one minute of your time, put them under your microscope and then realize that those people would be incapable of walking one mile in your shoes!
Then ignore the funny clowns who are so far under your radar for ever and let them nourish their anger while you are doing your thing with faith.
If you are serious about accomplishing your projects whatever they are, always choose to walk the walk while worthless losers will talk a useless talk.
Those who walk the walk might experience harsh struggles at specific times of their lives, they might walk through rain and storm, but they perfectly know that- at the end of the tunnel- a beautiful ray of sunshine is waiting for them. Not even afraid of failure, because failure is an important life teaching in itself, they use each event , each single happening as an invaluable experience and it actually makes them stronger.
Choose the path of the victory but walking the walk and let the grim and anger destroy the useless talkers. Your path might seem difficult, but it is golden. There is indeed a great retribution for the hard working and the passionate. Also remember that the passion in itself is worth the greatest retribution in the world, because it keeps you alive and makes you feel good.
Ready to make the right choice? It is all up to you.
Copyright 2007 by Isabelle Esling
All Rights Reserved

Check him out here. Malaki is a very gifted artist, don t sleep on him…

If you never heard about Mudd of 5ELA, it is about time for you to be introduced to one of the Detroit underground s finest talents.
Mudd manages to bring hip hop to its rawest, purest form. He belongs to that unique breed of artists who breathe the music.
Some of you probably heard Mudd on several 5ELA- the group that once consisted of legend RIP Proof, Mudd and Thyme- tracks. Now you will be able to appreciate Mudd aKa Mudd Holle s solo talent. Be ready for some intense moments of musical expression, yes, be ready to live out hip hop to the fullest!
Boys Night Out introduces you into a rhythmic and frivole atmosphere. While Mudd spreads some explosive lyrics in a chill out club atmosphere, talking to a lady. Enjoy the syllables play, the hot ambiance that is drawn by the instrumentals. I recommend the song to all of you. It allies sweetness and a sexual healing atmosphere. Well done.
Top 10 s is built of rapid piano notes and keyboard sounds. Meet Mudd in the hood. Enjoy his full mouthed speech, his hot, descriptive rhymes that totally fit with the typical Detroit hood.
Mudd has a nice flow delivery, his texts and instrumentals are hard worked on.
Hater City drops the listener into a rough, unsafe 7 Mile environment. Feel the harshness, the constant struggling and hustling atmosphere of the 313 that is reinforced by dark bass sounds and rhythmic drums. Let a real lyrical soldier show you what the D is all about. Check out Hater City. It won t disappoint your ears!
Training Day starts in a very offensive, merciless style. Mudd is taking over with his sharp, well handled lyrics, proudly representing 5ELA and teaching you the art of war.
Check Mudd here
Copyright © 2007 by Isabelle Esling
All Rights Reserved

Before some negative critics start barking at me, I d like to point out that you will be more likely understand the story better if you have lived or are still living in a French ghetto.
Global rating of the product: 4.5 stars
A man who accidentally fell from a huge building needs to be reassured. He keeps telling to himself all the way during his downfall: everything is ok till now.
Falling is not the most important, but your landing.
This sentence, which starts the movie, summarizes the difficulty of growing up in the ghetto.
Produced by Matthieu Kossovitz, La Haine opens on an overheated youth riots against the police theater. A Bob Marley musical background draws the dramatic context of a story that takes place at the Cite des Muguets, a ghetto near Paris, in the early 90 s, at a time riots, protests, young ghetto people and police violent fights were part of the French history. Because economical and political problems remain misunderstood and unsolved, history likes repeating itself, as the recent French riots tend to prove it.
The youths from the second and third generation of immigrants are often viewed as nuisances, but nobody in the government takes the time to have a realistic look at their harsh conditions of living and their hopelessness.
The poignant drama, La Haine, introduces you into a typical French ghetto, where a young man, Abdel Isha, who had been caught in the middle of the riots and beaten up by the police, is now between life and death at a local hospital.
Three buddies, a young Jewish guy, Vince, his fellow Said, of Algerian origins and their mate Hubert, a young black man, live in the middle of the Cite des Muguets.
All the three of them have accumulated, through the recent events, a great dose of hatred and bitterness. Their already fragile mental stability has been destroyed as well as their environment. Cars have been burnt, sports buildings and schools have been turned into a gigantic chaotic no man s land. Vince is mad at the cops and envisions killing one of them in case his friend Abdel doesn t survive. He even acquired a gun for that precise purpose.
While Hubert whose dream is to become a boxer and Said don t share Vince s extreme views about shooting a cop as a form of retaliation, both nevertheless think that they are the victims of an infernal system.
While the movie also pictures some comical scenes of the young men acting in front of the mirror, mimicking their rage and some interesting break dance and Djing scenes, it also offers a deep reflection about today s youth malaise and difficulties of living in the hood. It draws the police s brutality against young males in the ghetto.
The movie is cut in short sequences that will allow the viewer to follow the story of a day s journey with a dramatic ending.
There are a lot of happenings during the movie that would be too long to summarize within a short review, including an altercation with an awful band of skinheads in the middle of Paris in which Vince renounces to kill the skinhead he and his friends caught while the skinhead was trying to escape from them.
While Said is trying to get his money back ,downtown, in Paris, Said and Hubert will be caught and mistreated by the police. Vince escapes, but will rejoin them afterwards at the train station. The last train has gone and our three boys are condemned to stay in Paris until the morning.
While standing still, watching a last bulletin news at the station, Abdel s picture appears on the screen. He just passed away.
Vince promises vengeance. He is determined to shoot a cop.
But destiny is a bitch. Back in the hood, a dumb policeman catches Vince and plays an insane comedy with the young man pretending to kill him for fun with his- already loaded- gun that shoots a merciless bullet into Vince s head.
Hubert, who watches his friend die in front of his eyes points a gun at the killer cop who is also ready to shoot. The viewer will guess the ending of the scenario easily.
As the movie stops on Said s confused and horrified glance, Hubert s voice will remind you of his own downfall:
A man who accidentally fell from a huge building needs to be reassured. He keeps telling to himself all the way during his downfall: everything is ok till now.
Falling is not the most important, but your landing.
The movie that is pictured in black and white is brilliantly interpreted by Vincent Cassel, Hubert Kounde and Said Taghmaoui who will give the viewer some insights about the youths hope, difficulties and harsh struggles in the French ghettos. It is also a good overture for a deep reflection about the current events- I mean the recent French riots- that made the headlines, but that were often misinterpreted and badly covered by the French and foreign media.
The youths from the French ghettos are nothing else than the products of their environment. They are France s unwanted kids whose parents and grandparents the government welcomed in the 70 s as working forces.
They have the French nationality on paper, but a whole nation discriminates against poor kids with foreign sounding names, who just aim at being treated equally and having fairer chances on the job market.
Instead of dealing with the problem, the French government reinforces strict and often unjustified police measures, making kids in the ghetto feel even more insolated and discriminated against.
I really liked Matthieu Kossovitz movie, because he goes straight to the facts and identifies the problem where it actually lies. His unbiased way of telling the story, the young actors undeniable talent, the good dose of humor that contrasts with the rough ghetto universe makes this film a must see. I recommend it to all of you.
Copyright © 2007 by Isabelle Esling
All Rights Reserved

Rating of the product: 4 stars
Definitely gansgta in his spirit, coming up with some dangerously erosive material, Tha Dogg Pound combines crazy rhythms, various instrumentals and offensive lyrics in his Everybody song.
Swinging drum beats, violins, bell sounds will progressively lead you into an overheated speech atmosphere. Armed with a good dose of self confidence, Tha Dogg Pound already conquered his audience. His charismatic attitude has the power to move the crowd while his merciless attitude will leave some opponents banging.
As the song goes on, Tha Dogg Pound lyrically shoots his enemies down. You can touch his unbeatable flow and he wont let you take advantage on him. Acting like a lyrical bully, Tha Dogg Pound is kicking his enemies asses in no time.
An intelligent use of various instrumentals with a definite G funk old school flavor in the background probably won t leave the listeners indifferent.
Ready for a lyrical knocc out? I d recommend you to check out the song.
Copyright 2007 by Isabelle Esling
All Rights Reserved

If you think that Compton s reps have been buried with the split of NWA, a decade ago, then you are totally wrong.
A new breed of emcees is determined to keep Compton s legacy alive. The most surprising is that most of them are connected to the former Compton legends.
Ever heard about Hood Surgeon? Hood Surgeon aka Curtis Young is notorious Dr Dre s son who -obviously- inherited his father s great talent for the music.
After a few years break due to his imprisonment, Arlandis Hinton also known as BG Knocc Out, Eazy E s former fellow is ready for some new musical projects. So is his talented elder brother, Dresta.
Both men will probably enchant true hip hop lovers.
But who is the new prince of Compton? Nobody else but Eazy E s son, Lil Eazy who comes up with a brand new Prince Of Compton CD.
The same spirit of Compton that has been carried for years by young black men who had a real attitude is still alive.
Be ready for some new Compton delights. Be so curious and explore the talented artists named above!
Copyright © 2007 by Isabelle Esling
All Rights Reserved

Metro, London s most read free newspaper, reported a strange story today that happened in Alabama.
A James Brown fan who was obviously upset and angry against a fellow fan who happened to disagree over the recently deceased legend s height. The disagreement escalated to an unexpected extent and had dramatic consequences: the angry James Brown fan shot his fellow fan twice in the abdomen and killed him. The fool tried to kill himself after the shooting, but being unsuccessful in reaching his goal, he walked to the police station and admitted killing his former friend.
Most sources reported that James Brown was 5 feet 6 inches, but I don t even know what his height was. Who cares anyway? I love his music and so do many people in this world!
Today, I would like to address to a specific category of fans: the extreme ones.
Not the quantity of details you know about your artist, nor the number of posters or garments from his clothing line you actually have at home will make a better or a more interesting fan of you. The number of gadgets or clothes you possess might just tend to prove that you are a good consumer, not even a dedicated fan. Please don t misquote me: I do have some T shirts, posters and garments too, like many other fans. But I think that I wouldn t buy all of an artist s commercial stuff, because I think it is just plain stupid. I d rather spend the money on the music than on the clothes or any other gadget.
Of course-particularly as a biographer- I have been in depth with my favorite s artist s life. I have tried to do my best to combat the media s bad stereotypes against Eminem and have gathered a lot of info through the years. My goal was to picture Eminem in his every day life as a father, a husband and a friend to his fellows, so people could realize much more that he was just a human being. However, I don t really appreciate people who spend their spare time talking about celebrity gossips, because I find those annoying as hell.
As a journalist, I like true facts, not rumors and I do believe that a true fan should be much more focused about an artist s music than his whereabouts.
What makes an artist interesting in my eyes is his music. The paradox with Eminem is that you could barely dissociate the man with the music, because you need to know the story if you want to understand the music. But there is a huge difference between having a good knowledge of the man s biography and spending one s time fantasizing about his life and frequentations. I m not keen on crusty details about his personal life, simply because I do consider that it is none of my business. Any reasonable person would probably agree with me.
I would like to put a few things clear with my readers: most of you know me as the supportive Eminem fan I actually am. Most of you know how much I have expressed about the man and his music. I admit that while expressing some views on Em, his family or his friends, I might have been wrong.
I never said that anything I pointed out about Marshall Mathers was the gospel truth. You know why? Simply because I don t know Marshall Mathers as a person.
I have explored Eminem and Slim Shady, his characters. But the real Marshall Mathers remains veiled to me.
Any Eminem fan, even those who met him shortly should have the modesty to admit that they don t know their idol. To be able to pretend you know him for real, you must belong to his intimate circle of friends.
If we all made a slight mistake about Eminem s height, the world would keep turning, wouldn t it?
If Eminem told you to jump from a bridge, what would you do? I know I wouldn t.
If having a filthy backstage behavior was the only way to meet him, would you become 10 people s dirty slut? I perfectly know I wouldn t. I leave such disgusting behavior to the groupies.
Do you get my point?
Be a supportive fan as much as you want, but never cross the line of becoming one of those creepy extreme fans!
Copyright 2007 by Isabelle Esling
All Rights Reserved

Rating of the product: 4 stars
Welcome to Tupac s Greatest Hits compilation album. Ready for a ride with one of the greatest in the rap game? Let s go.
CD one
The first CD starts with Keep Ya Head Up. The song is based on soft female vocals, keyboard sounds and rhythmic drum beats. Tupac praises and encourages ladies who struggle in the ghetto to keep their heads up. Despite the description of the harsh living conditions, the lack of money, hopelessness, drugs, the song highly praises women s fight in the hood. The song is also a touching tribute to Tupac s mom who struggled hard to raise her kids.
2 Of Americaz Most Wanted features Calvin Broadus aka Snoop Dogg. The song is rhythmic and enlightens Tupac s nice flow delivery. However, this one is not one of my favorites. I find the gangsta party theme a little bit annoying.
Temptations is based on rapid drum beats combined with keyboard sounds. Tupac s raspy voice will tell you about the loneliness at the top. The repetitive sounds strongly suggest that the luscious temptations haunt a groupie s mind and won t go away. Will the artist resist to his own temptations? Good and evil struggle against each other in a merciless struggle.
Distorted sounds that will make you feel insecure introduce God Bless The Dead. Tupac throws an offensive RIP Biggie Smalls. The song is an obvious diss aimed at Tupac s all time rival.
Siren sounds intensify the unsafe atmosphere of the song.
No need to introduce the well known Hail Mary brought to you by the Don Killuminati. The song is well worked on, lyrically and instrumentally.
Don t miss Me Against The World, So Many Tears and Trapped.
Hit Em Up is written in a menacing way. Piano sounds combined with swinging drum beats will make the listener feel Tupac s arrogance against his enemies.
He wasn t afraid of anybody and didn t shy away from shouting it out loudly.
Biggie and Bad Boy Entertainment got smacked in the face straight away by an angry and fearless Tupac.
On a side note, Hit Em Up inspired D12 who sampled Tupac on a song that carries the same title.
CD Two
Troublesome 96 starts the second CD. Constructed on soft cithara notes, combined with Tupac s rhymes and a dark basslines, the track fully defines a rebel with a cause.
Brenda s Got A Baby opens on a dramatic dimension that is built on intense guitar sounds, violin sounds and soft female vocal that represent a soul s deep cry.
The dramatic story pictures a very young 12 year old girl getting pregnant, giving birth to a baby and dramatically throwing it into the trash.
Neither Brenda does realize the consequence of her action, nor does her family care about her pregnancy. The poor girl is left on her own.
I discovered Tupac with Changes. With his undeniable lyrical skills, Tupac will talk about the ghetto like nobody else. With his sharp voice and his sharp minded words, his genuine spirit that makes him unique in the world of rap music, Tupac teaches his listeners about hood life with an amazing veracity.
Racial discrimination, jail time, police runaways are part of his every day life. Be sure that some things will never change.
Enjoy the beautifully, electronically lead California Love brought to you by Dr Dre and Tupac. Enjoy the West coast dimension of the song.
Dear Mama is certainly one of the most touching ode a son wrote for his mother. It has the power to raise tears in my eyes each time I listen to it. The soft funky background combined with the soft vocals will make you feel the love and recognition.
Tupac grew up in very harsh conditions. His mom did the best she could with her little money. Sit back, relax and enjoy the sweet hymn that chants a wonderful black Queen s qualities.
Tupac s Greatest Hits album is the perfect introduction for people who want to explore the artist s greatest and best known songs.
Copyright © 2007 by Isabelle Esling
All Rights Reserved

N.B: please don t steal this pic, since it has been posted with the author s exclusive permission for promotional purposes! Thank you.

Read it here.