Business…to me, Tiger Woods is Jimi Hendrix.
Two things have disturbed me in the last 24 hours. Today, my buddy Ernesto and I have been talking about the new Redman record. I’m giving it the first run through, and I like it. He loves it, as does my brother. Anyway, his AIM away message says that people need to check out Red Gone Wild. The response he got from a few people?
“Who still listens to Redman?”
Oy. A little part of me died. Reggie’s one of my five favorite rappers ever. Out of his mind, creative even when he’s repetitive, and unquestionably an all-time great. Gracious, he’s been doing this for 16 years now and still bangs hard. His delivery is unmistakable, and his flow is always on point. I preferred back in the day when he flipped a zillion styles, but I still love what he brings.
But now, folks are talking about Reggie like he’s Johnny Mathis. That hurt.
But not as much as BET’s countdown of the greatest dancers of all-time. I watched that with my girlfriend, who’s a dancer. She must have watched that like I check things on writers. The difference, of course, is writers evaluate writers, so the opinions offered are pretty much on point. I may not agree, but I can see where they’re coming from.
However, I can’t see how in the world Puffy is the 24th greatest dancer of all-time. Even the absurdly ranked 25, Ciara, should have been offended.
When Usher hit the screen as something like 11, my girlfriend hit the floor. Literally. Off the couch and on the floor. And she’s fighting some illness.
But nothing, and I mean nothing, could have prepared us to see Chris Brown at 4. That put him higher than Alvin Ailey. Alvin Ailey’s pretty good, if you didn’t know.
I actually like Chris Brown. I doubt I’ll buy any of his albums for a few years, but he’s talented as all get out. I respect his hustle.
However, if he’s the 4th best dancer ever, I’m the 4th best writer ever. You had to be kidding me.
I don’t know much of a lick about dancing. I admit that. But I know better than that.
It was a strange countdown because there were only like three dancers doing commentary. Seriously, Godfrey, the dude that succeeded Orlando Jones as the 7Up guy, knew more about dancing than most of the people doing commentary. He’s a friggin’ comedian, man. And it’s not like he’s a comedian/dance critic. He’s just funny.
Oy.
I recognize that there was supposed to be great emphasis on music performers because those are the people that hook the audience. I get that. But are you serious? Omarion was so high on that list that I wondered why he’s not already in somebody’s hall of fame. Absurd stuff, man. I was just happy my girlfriend got off the carpet within five minutes. For a second, I was worried that she’d passed out. Nope. She was just blown away.
And I was, too.
April 9, 2007
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