:: blame the extended gestation.... ::

:: Wednesday, December 31, 2003 ::

Chuck D on Eminem (by way of American Black)
PUBLIC ENEMY | Chuck D's Terrordome :

"This moves me to the last point answering to the EMINEM debacle. In this game ain’t nobody an angel, however in any situation the rites of passage or the trail that got you there must be of some public record. This is beyond anything personal and it could be fair to accept it as such. In the past I’ve accepted EMINEM for skating over the crutch of ‘nigga-ism’ that so many young black folks are given like dog food to fuel their bites. Niggism was EMINEM’S kryptonite and he’s smart enough to know it. Always knew it, and in his quest to make it on the mike sniffed and licked the dog food. He might’ve spit it out, but never admitted going to the bowl. Thus a trust was based, but within a whole entirely different generation of hip hop cat early to mid nineties. It’s the ‘try anything goes for profit mentality’ that pardons EMINEM in the present generation and amerikkkan time. It’s the chaotic collective powerlessness of black folk 2003 that pardons EMINEM at this time. Although, from afar, I have liked EMINEM meeting him once in ATLANTA my evaluation is reversed to many of these cats. I know better to say I like somebody based on their art, movie, TV show or record. Saying I like somebody doesn’t mean I respect them, and this is beyond their skill or how much money they’ve got. I can’t say I respect EMINEM at all, I like DRE I can’t say I’ve respected him as much. Same with SNOOP, MASTER P, LUDA, R KELLY,THE SOURCE and many others. I happen to like them more than respect them, whereas they may feel more respect than like for me or my beliefs on things. And that’s fine I guess but like and respect are two different things. Respect only comes with integrity, and that’s not necessary to exist in today’s amerikkkan cultural world. I’ve always liked RUSSELL SIMMONS but my respect has never been there really fully. You either stand up for something or fall for anything and too often he’s stood four foot on kneepads. Doesn’t mean he’s not a nice guy. So this ain’t a thing of losing respect for EMINEM because I never had much of it anyway, and I’m not into a witch hunt thing of burying him, this rather is a test for black people in amerikkka."

:: Jim Nichols 12/31/2003 04:04:00 PM [+] ::
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