KAnYe Is PeRmAnEnTlY "kEePiNg Up" WiTh KiM kArDaShIaN

America wondered if Kimye would ever make their bond official and on October 21st, at AT&T Park in San Francisco, California, Kanye rented out the stadium to propose to his baby mama and reality starlet, Kim Kardashian. The E! Queen was presented with a 15 carat Lorraine Schwartz diamond ring, which Kanye helped to design. They say diamonds are a girls' best friend and I'm sure Kim's 33rd birthday got a lot brighter after Kanye, slid that huge sparkler on her finger. 

The life of Kim Kardashian has taken her on a public whirl wind of controversial events; from her exposed sex tape, to her exposed body parts, to her exposed 72 day 2nd marriage from hell. The negative backlash which ensued after Kardashian filed for divorce, appeared to leave her bewildered and vulnerable; enters Kanye West. He was there in her time of need when Kardashian fans felt betrayed by her jilted marriage, and unleashed their fury in comment sections on media outlets. 

The Hip Hop star may have been Kim's saving grace while she endured the tough times in her life and as a result, their bond seemed to be made stronger. West flipped the script on America and made their duo tighter with an "us against the world" type mentality. A fleeting romance emerged between the two highly profiled stars which eventually produced their beautiful 4 month old daughter, North West. 

Honestly, I thought it would take Kanye a lot longer to propose to Kim, since she's been married twice before and the creative genius seemed less inclined to getting his heart broken. But the Yeezus rapper is apparently sure of himself and Kim as well, since she accepted her boyfriend's marriage proposal. 

"[Marriage] is something I know that we both want in our future, but I don't have this sense of urgency about it," Kim herself said in the February 2013 issue of Cosmpolitan. "I have this best friend who understands me and helps me through all my tough experiences, and vice versa, you know? It just feels like this is it for me."

Well, there you have it! Congrats to the newly engaged couple!

2013 LA

HiGhLiGhTs oF tHe 2013 BeT hIp HoP aWaRdS

The host of this years BET Hip Hop Awards was Uncle Snoop, who graced the stage with his calm laid back demeanor and "O G" swag. The show opened with Snoop being interviewed by James Lipton, the host of Inside the Actor's Studio. Lipton was truly a team player using Snoop's one-of-a-kind Ebonics, to communicate with the veteran rapper. The comical video made light of the event which is usually known for its gritty, hard, and explicit artistry. The BET Hip Hop Awards isn't as commercialized as The Grammy's and doesn't give out as many awards, but it does stay focused on the craft of Hip Hop by introducing to the world up-and-coming rappers through metaphorical cyphers.

The political climate was thick at this years award show with rappers wearing hoodies that read, "Racially Profiled" and t-shirts with the "Illuminati pyramid" while referencing black activists like Huey P. Newton. Then uncle Snoop stepped his political game up with a parody video of 'The Butler' which showed him serving several presidents throughout the decades, with Snoop giving each president the proper "greetings" they deserved. The parody video ended with Snoop as the "butler" greeting President Obama, giving the commander-in-chief the down low of the streets while arranging a basketball date with the preezy!

It was a pleasant surprise the variety of cyphers this year with the "Real Husbands of Hollywood" actors, chiming in to contribute their comical cyphers that gave the BET audience a thrill. Most cyphers are serious business so the added comedy was a good balance. Veteran rappers Lil Kim and Joe Budden made cypher appearances but in all honesty, A$AP Mob and Kendrick Lamar stole the cypher show in my opinion. 

Diddy, French Montana, Snoop, and Rick Ross hit the stage giving an energetic performance that got everybody to their feet, with Diddy in the end "crowning" himself as king. Then Bone Thugs-N-Harmony took us back to the "crossroads" and the "first of the month", two singles that exploded within urban communities while proving timeless as the BET audience sang and swayed to the music. 

And of course the "I AM HIP HOP" award went to none other than MC Lyte! Lyte as a Rock! Gotta Get a Rough Neck! What!? The industry veteran took to the stage in her leather black and white outfit, and looked no older than 35 years old. As a person that grew up listening to MC Lyte, all I want to say is it's about time, and I want to personally thank the Hip Hop legend for defending women in her speech. 

The 2013 BET Hip Hop Awards was official.

2013 LA

RaNtInG aNd RaViNg: ThE pHiLoSoPhY tHaT iS kAnYe WeSt

                                     Kanye West; Jimmy Kimmel (NY Daily News)
October 9, 2013 - Hip Hop star Kanye West made an unexpected visit to the Jimmy Kimmel Live show, and it appears both men buried their twitter feud differences with one another; Kimmel apologized to Kanye at the beginning of the interview. During the sit-down which centered around a BBC interview Kanye had given previously, Kimmel did in fact admit he didn't listen to West's rhetoric in it's entirety. West sarcastically commented "Yea that's what I thought."

The apology was due to a parody video Kimmel made which portrayed the rapper as a child ranting West's BBC interview lines. The "Blood on the Leaves" rapper didn't appreciate the video and displayed his frustrations in a public twitter rant. Kimmel seemed to further soften his apology by sharing with the audience his personal experience hanging with West at a wedding, and showed a picture of Kanye with his dad. Kimmel painting a humane picture of West, gave the rapper permission to pick up where he left off from the BBC interview while pressing forward with his complaints of major designers within the fashion industry, who refuse to give him a chance to produce great products due to industry "status" he describes as classism.

After listening to West's BBC interview and watching him on Jimmy Kimmel, it's easy to understand how some people feel Kanye is on a rant rave. He hasn't mastered the art of controlling his passionate outbursts yet, or maybe he just doesn't care to. His aim is definitely to make you "feel" his words.

What do I think about Kanye's "rants"?

Honestly, his "rants" seem to be about discrimination and he appears hurt over the lack of diversity in industry areas of his interest. In his BBC interview West stated "I look around me, and there's no one around here in this space -- that looks like me. And if they are, they're quiet as f**k!" 

It would seem that West isn't a stranger to the hard knock life of discrimination, and chooses to use his powerful platform of artistry to make his frustrations known. His life experiences literally dictate the outcome of his artwork and he has cleverly found a way to mesh both worlds together; upsetting it, not upsetting it. There's a saying that "all publicity is good publicity" and Kanye, seems to take full advantage of this hypothetical.

In the BBC interview West stated, "I'm here to crack the pavement and make new grounds sonicly" and "I'm going to try to make something that jumps up and affects you." Like a slavery movie Kanye doesn't want to make you comfortable he wants to excite the nerves. 

Does Kanye West consider himself to be a new genre? 

In the philosophy that is Kanye West; is molding the world with his imagination the ultimate goal in life therefore unequivocally establishing himself as an "original" and not a carbon copy? It's obvious he's an original when it comes to music but what about other areas -- such as fashion? Will he prove himself to be a master of fashion, or allow himself to be held back by the resistance of others? I'm sure everyone knows the answer to the latter!

Side note: At the end of Jimmy Kimmel Live, did you hear the talk show host call Kim Kardashian Kanye's wife? Was it a stab or simply respect?

2013 LA

RiHaNnA gIvEs MiLeY cYrUs A tWeRkInG lEsSoN

A week ago sultry singer Rihanna set ablaze the music world with her SUPER sexy song titled, "Pour it up". The best way for me to describe Rihanna's new video; stripper meets carnival where Rihanna opens up wearing a blingy but revealing top, which she wore during carnival time back home on the beautiful island of Barbados.

The beat is a solid club banger, sure to get all party goers out of their seats and on the dance floor. Moreover, the music video lures you in with its acrobatic and exotic moves performed by Rihanna and video vixen extras. 

Was the video to revealing? Will some people argue that Rihanna's video is an exploitation of women's bodies? 

Maybe. However, I thoroughly enjoyed the music and the performances within the video and towards the end all I could think was, "Miley Cyrus now that's how you twerk!" 

2013 LA