And what a month it's been so far! This month's music industry insanity does not disappoint.
Headline #1: 'Love the Way You Lie' Causes Controversy for Eminem, Rihanna
Rihanna and Eminem have a new music video out, starring Megan Fox (guess she wasn't busy with filming the next Transformers, huh?) and Dominic Monaghan. The video has caused a bit of a ruckus, because it allegedly promotes, glorifies or otherwise excuses domestic violence.
Is it true? Well, yes. Violence and sexuality are tied together throughout the entire video; there's lots of hitting and wall-punching followed immediately by Cinemax-grade dry humping. Now I don't know how else to tell you this, so I'll just come right out and say it: what we have here is a rap music video that ties sex and violence together, suggesting that the two are basically the same thing. If this is shocking to you, it's probably because money and drugs apparently are not directly involved.
Lyrics for the above, if you're so inclined.
We all know the story here isn't that we've suddenly found domestic violence in rap music. The story is that Rihanna is a part of all of this. In fact, FoxNews.com cheerfully reminds us that, "besides her singing, Rihanna is best know for getting beat up by her boyfriend Chris Brown the night before the Grammys in 2009." I doubt that particular career synopsis will make it into her one-page resume, but way to sum her up for us.
Tactlessness aside, FoxNews.com is being perhaps unintentionally accurate. This story wouldn't have existed without the vicious assault on Rihanna by a revolting, subhuman serial douchebag named Chris Brown, who I must confess I don't much care for. Intentionally or not, on display are two people in a music video who are showing people exactly how not to live... just like about every other music video ever made.
Headline #2: Idol Winner Fantasia Barrino Overdoses
Season three's American Idol winner overdosed on "sleep aid and aspirin." There's plenty of suspicion as to what "sleep aid" means, as it certainly sounds less dramatic than "sleeping pills" or "Valium" or something like that. Imagine if Kurt Cobain was said to have overdosed on lead, in other words. Addiction experts are already being trotted out to make excuses for Fantasia, who they don't know and don't treat. While I don't in the slightest way dispute she might have an addiction, I do think it's awfully early for people who know nothing about her to publicly apologize for her behavior. But hey, unemployment being what it is, maybe it's a good foot-in-the-door to becoming a celeb's favorite therapist.
Granted I have a Bachelor's Degree in Who Cares and I'm licensed to practice absolutely nothing, but I'd say it's probably more likely that the overdose is deliberate and in response to the sudden release of Fantasia's series of sex tapes - yes, more than one - featuring ... wait, let me cut myself off here. Fantasia's sex tapes. Walt Disney, how could you!? Setting "Fanfare to the Common Man" to fornication! Ha! Ok, I'm sorry, I couldn't help myself.
Ok. As I was saying, Fantasia Barrino has a series of sex tapes featuring her and a married man getting frisky, which I think really underscores the long-proven point that you should never film yourself doing anything you don't want other people to see. Really, just what the hell is the matter with people? And what celebrity still hasn't heard that the Internet has been invented, and that every celebrity sex tape in the history of celebrity sex tapes is now just a few mouse clicks away? If you're stupid enough to have an affair, DON'T BE STUPID ENOUGH TO RECORD IT.
Headline #3: Wyclef Jean Says He Will Run for President of Haiti
I'm in such disbelief of some of the coverage this story is getting that I'm going to quote from the above link from TIME a bit and comment, so bear with me.
Hip-hop music, more than most pop genres, is something of a pulpit, urban fire and brimstone garbed in baggy pants and backward caps.
*Gag.* God, not another one of these "journalists."
So it's little wonder that one of the form's icons, Haitian-American superstar Wyclef Jean, is the son of a Nazarene preacher — or that he likens himself, as a child of the Haitian diaspora, to a modern-day Moses, destined to return and lead his people out of bondage.
I hope we're done making out with him for the rest of the article, or at least indulging his insane fantasies if he really does liken himself to Moses.
It's tempting to dismiss this as flaky performance art, a publicity stunt from the same guy who just a few years ago recorded a number called "If I Was President." But Jean's chances, as well as his motives, seem solid. And there are good reasons for Haitians — and the U.S.-led international donor community, which is bankrolling Haiti's long slog to the 21st century — to take this particular hip-hop politician seriously. Pop-culture celebrity hardly disqualifies one from high office. (The last time I looked, an action hero was still running California.) And in Haiti, where half the population of about 9 million is under age 25, it's an asset as golden as a rapper's chains. Amid Haiti's gray postquake rubble, Jean is far more popular with that young cohort than the country's chronically corrupt and inept mainstream politicians are, and he'll likely galvanize youth participation in the election.
Wow, so this is really sounding like Time Magazine is ready to get out the cameras and, well, learn nothing at all from Fantasia Barrino.
Here's the problem with Wyclef Jean, whose motives clearly are not pure as has been repeatedly proved to anyone with a brain (meaning not author Peter Hapak): Wyclef Jean is a corrupt, greedy, incompetent fool, and being a young political outsider doesn't change that.
You may not have heard, but after Haiti's earthquake Wyclef Jean was paying himself and his businesses at least $410,000 out of his own Haitian charity, allegedly to...raise money... for his charity... for Haiti. None of the books are up to snuff of the IRS, who is investigating.
His apologetic response at the time?
"When donkeys spread rumors about me, I don't respond 'cause I'm the master that leads them to the well to drink the water," [...] "I have been spending money in my country since I was a Fugees! Why is it now after the Quake I am being [an] excuse?"
Mea culpa, huh? To Jean apologists, I guess it wasn't a big deal when it was found out he took a further $105,000 from the charity to pay his secretary/mistress, who really did nothing at all for the charity, either. But hey, as TIME reports:
In Florida, where the charity has an office, it failed to file its paperwork on time in four of the past six years, and watchdogs like Charity Navigator have questioned it for filing tax returns that were "beyond late." Jean has acknowledged the questionable payments but blamed them on accounting errors. He insists the problems have been fixed since he hired a reputable Washington accounting firm to whip Yéle Haiti's books into shape. "I took responsibility," he says. "I took the bullet."
Excuse me, no, you didn't take a bullet. You took hundreds of thousands of dollars for your own personal advancement, and you're getting a pass from a lot of people, including TIME, because it's more convenient to pretend that you're an exciting newcomer with new ideas of some nebulous kind that're going to magically transform the country somehow than it is to recognize you're just an empty know-nothing thief who has no capacity to administrate, lead or even pay your own taxes.
Now, if you want to be the United States Secretary of the Treasury...
By craig_o
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