Commonword Blogs

This article focuses on what happened when the corporate world made Hip Hop mainstream and inspired the Hip Hop gangster fairytale.

The Gangster story was not invented by the Hip Hop scene, but has inspired artists imagery since the corporate world came to play.

Since the 1930’s, Gangster films have glamorised the lifestyle with moguls/bitches, (trophy women), guns, expensive clothing, cars, houses, drinks and authority over every day people and the law.

VERY INTENSE

Hi Everyone, I'm fairly new to this. I have an autobiography out called 'The Changing Scenes Of Life'. It is about my life from baby hood to adulthood. It is on Lulu.com marketplace with my photo. It is the biggest writing thing I've ever done. Next week, I will publish here an extract of the authobiography. Hope you enjoy it!

Its almost been a month since my last blog and still no word from Pete Kalu about my novel. A writer's winter. The frustration penetrates the skin like the cold but this cold doesn’t make you shiver, it heats you up and eats you up, makes you want to barge into someone's office and ask them what they're playing at, makes you want to give them the dismissive missive - forget it mate, I’ve found someone else who'll publish me, only I haven’t.
So what came first, the writer or his novel?

One of my main projects this year and next is creating a new show with our spoken word/hip hop theatre collective, Pen-ultimate, which comprises myself, Martin Stannage (aka Visceral), Ali Gadema (aka Frisko Dan), Niven Ganner and Samira Arhin-Accquah (aka Lucid).

The working title of the show is A Night On the Tiles, and is based around a high-stakes underground Scrabble game played by a group of gangsters and word wizards. Think of the poker scene at the beginning of Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels, but with racks and tiles instead of cards and chips. 

I've been back from Nepal for three days and already the memories, along with my tan, are starting to fade. But fortunately, one of the best things about being away was that I kept a regular diary. This is a habit I only seem to observe when I'm in a foreign country, as if my daily experiences at home aren't worth as much as the ones I have when I'm away.

“The quality of lyrics eventually came to be dictated by record labels unfortunately, in order to move CD’s off the shelf rather than move people for change.” Smith and Jackson: The Hip-Hop Church, 2005.

Now people! We’re approach the nuclei of our discussion as we look into how the exploitation of Hip Hop via Record labels paved the way for critics to draw parallels between Hip Hop culture and youth crime. It began with rap and slowly other Hip Hop elements followed. Join me as I explore how and why.

Friday roast

Leg of lamb, from ‘Lahori butchers’
Plenty of dehi and Natco’s mirch/masaley,
lemon and salt, garlic and ginger.
Aunt Bessie’s Yorkshire puds.
6 large British baking spuds.
4 onions (of course – can’t be without).
Green beans and carrots from Smith’s farms.

All in a large, turkey size,
Christmas style roasting tray
tightly wrapped in foil.
At 150 degrees, 4 to 5 hours.
Lay the table for your family.
Go out and work up an appetite.
Don’t snack or munch.
Come back, don’t rush, mix Bisto granules
with juices from the caramelised onions.

Stumbled bitter cold thru darkness into air as warm & thick as cornmeal porridge Bass line rising thru blood bone & sinew