Crib Notes

Which came first, the BET Hip-Hop Awards or Atlanta’s steady flow of garbage-ass rap music?

The chicken-or-the-egg question occurred to me as I watched last night’s broadcast of the awards show, which should’ve been renamed the Gucci Mane Awards for the number of performances (3?) featuring the East Atlanta-bred MC.

It typified a night in which the show took every possible opportunity to reference Atlanta — which is odd considering the crowd is made up entirely of industry fucks (artists, publicists, label reps, promoters, radio heads, etc.) and almost zero fans. (more…)

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Back when we included Fabo of D4L in the 2007 CL music issue, he seemed like the member of the Bankhead snap rap clique who was most likely to blow — not the D4L boss and former trap star Shawty Lo, who wound up dropping two solo albums and garnering a strong regional following in recent years. Fabo was also the member who drew the most criticism, mainly from hip-hop purists who felt the “Laffy Taffy” sound and Fabo’s colorful dances were destined to kill the culture.

But just when it seemed his detractors were about to get the last laugh, Fabo disappeared into the ether.

In the video clip above, he stops to talk to MTV’s Shaheem Reid on the red carpet of the ’09 BET Hip-Hop Awards, filmed in Atlanta earlier this month, and tells him that he returned to high school to get his diploma and is currently studying “business and management” at Ashworth College in Georgia.

I’m getting great grades. I ain’t no honor roll student or nothing like that, but I’m making it. I’m trying to better myself, not wanting this to be the last stop for me. Having a couple of more kids and watching them grow, being there with them. I been in the streets all my life, it’s time to do something for me and my family, you feel me? So I went back to school. That’s a great thing!” (more…)

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Many hip hop beefs — 50 Cent vs. Rick Ross, say, or T.I. vs. Shawty Lo — are all bluster. But when Young Jeezy and Gucci Mane beef, people die. That’s why it is troubling that the two are at it again.

As reported on Miss Info’s blog, Jeezy apparently took issue with a recent Gucci song and fired off a diss track, “24 23,” which take aim at Gucci and associate OJ da Juiceman. “Tell him this ain’t what he want, not the boy Snow,” Jeezy raps of Gucci. “But between me and you, I think the boy slow.”

It’s not entirely clear what Gucci song Jeezy takes issue with. Sure, his recent Big Cat Records album Murder Was The Case contains plenty of Jeezy disses, but most of that material was recorded years ago. If there’s a shot taken at Jeezy on Gucci’s latest Writing On The Wall mixtape, I can’t pick it out. Anyone?

Finally, as Miss Info notes:

Mind you, this Friday, Gucci Mane, OJ da Juiceman and Young Jeezy are booked to perform at the 102 Jamz SuperJam in Greenboro, NC.

And then on Saturday…again…Gucci Mane, OJ da Juiceman and Young Jeezy are booked to perform at the Hot 107.9 Birthday Bash in Atlanta, GA.

hmmm…let’s hope both sides respect their radio sponsors and keep the peace.

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Read this week’s CL cover story: Fresh from jail, Gucci Mane’s star has peaked. Can the combustible rapper take advantage?

Download Writing on the Wall, Gucci’s latest mixtape.

Listen + download a plethora of Gucci Mane mixtapes.

Gucci’s beginnings with Big Cat Records:

More of the Guc:
At home with Gucci, from Shawty Lo’s Raw Report DVD: The Real Bankhead Story:

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Here it is — XXL’s Hood to Hood issue. And Atlanta’s at the forefront.

But they got the headline wrong. Should’ve named it after that classic MC Eiht song, “The Hood Took Me Under.”

So should we be happy that the Northern hip-hop media elite have finally embraced Southern swag? Or are they mere co-conspirators out to capitalize on the dumbing down of rap?

Disclaimer: Gucci’s Mane’s latest CD, Murder Was the Case, and Soulja Boy’s “Turn My Swag On” are both currently in heavy rotation in my Buick Regal.

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How do you prepare to walk the red carpet at hip-hop’s biggest media event of the year?

“I just drunk a few Budweisers,” said Attitude (above), a rapper/songwriter who’s penned songs for Nelly Furtado, Timbaland and Keri Hilson. The Birmingham native and Atlanta resident was one of hundreds ranging from big-name to no-name artists who fed sound bites and swaggerlicious poses to the zoo of photographers, bloggers, journalists and video crews for three hours before the show.

Some, like newcomer Jay Rock, sounded outright clueless. “I ain’t really even know I was gonna be here, man, it’s crazy,” said the Watts, Calif., native, whose single “All My Life” features Lil Wayne, the night’s three-time winner. “Like, all I did was got dressed, threw my clothes on, and they were like, ‘Man, you finna go to the BET Awards.’ I’m like, ‘Oh, that’s what’s up.’”

T.I., on the other hand, spoke with sober appreciation to be in the right place one year after making a detour that earned him federal gun charges and a year-long jail sentence that he begins serving next year. “It feels like a long road traveled, and it feels like a lotta hard work paying off. And now we came through it bigger, better, stronger. Period.” When asked what after-party he planned to attend, T.I. responded, “I’m working, no time for that.”

Forget the over-hyped performances (though the old-school medley featuring Salt N Pepa, MC Lyte, Yo-Yo and Lady of Rage was the night’s best) and over-the-big top fashions (how many top hats does show host fill-in T-Pain own, anyhow?); the BET Hip Hop Awards — like all celebrity-driven media events — is all about being seen and heard, pushing your agenda and promoting your next drop date.

So if you want to see who won what, tune into BET at 8 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 23 and labor through the two hour show. But if you want to see the stuff that’s too bootleg for TV, check out our list below:

BEST BIGGIE BLOOPER: The biggest blooper of the night came when Jamal “Gravy” Woolard — who plays deceased rapper Notorious B.I.G. in the biopic due to hit theaters January ‘09 — slipped and called Notorious “hip-hop’s first biological feature” instead of first biographical feature. They shot a retake.

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