In Part 2 we discuss what happened backstage and who had some pretty unkind words about the awards and the industry…
The Ying Yang Twins spoke about their Chemically Imbalanced
album coming up and Kane also stated that he has a solo album on the way called
Champion. Does this mean Ying Yang are breaking up? Probably not, but Kane did
let everyone know that he’s been waiting a very long time to strike out on his
own.
When Jay-Z won “Hustler Of The Year”, word began spreading
that Jay-Z has chosen to give up rocking excessive “bling” in favor of educating those on the
pitfalls of materialism and living outside of ones means. If this is true it proves that Jay has truly grown up
in this business and everyone should take note. If you don’t know how grown Hov
has become just check out “30-Something.”
Snoop showed up and took a little time to promote his album.
When someone asked a political question, Snoop took a long pause and belted out
“Fuck Voting!” which brought a little laughter out of the journalists. Another
asked what was the last album you enjoyed from beginning to end and Snoop
scratched his chin before cleverly stating “Curtis Mayfield…these newbies just
ain’t doing it right.” So there’s Snoop’s observation of the industry.
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When Remy Ma hit the media room we all knew something was about to go down given the nature of how Remy speaks her mind and never holds back. When a female journalist inquired about the state of
females in Hip Hop today, Remy went OFF. She clearly showed her disdain with
how BET didn’t have a single female nominated or asked to perform. Another asked what she’s up to and she went
off on a tangent about the industry. She shed light on how “dirty” the biz is
and her disdain for how her album was handled. She cited the fact that there
was no video for “Feels So Good” f/ Ne-Yo being the proverbial nail in the
coffin. She also stated she was a free agent and spoke some stiff words for her
former cohorts, mentioning that “The one who put me on didn’t really want to
see me make it.” Could she be talking about Fat Joe? As far as how much money
the artists make, “This business has me on a strict weed and blow pop diet.”
She also mentioned how important it was for artists to go independent and that
female emcees need to step their game up. But was also quick to note that there
are dope females but they aren’t showing enough “T&A” for the labels to
want to deal with them. Her tirade left
the rooms collective jaws dropped.
Slim Thug also echoed Remy Ma’s sentiments of how there is
no money at a major label and that his Boss Hogg Outlawz have signed a deal
with Koch and Slim is happy with the deal they got. He noted that “getting $8
per album is much better than what these majors are throwing at us.” He also
stated how album sales don’t mean anything to him as long as he is getting his
money. It is beginning to become interesting how many artists are going the indy
route and understand that a major doesn’t mean major money.
Flavor Flav and London “Deelishis” Charles took to the media
room next as Flavor grinned from ear to ear with his woman on his arm. When
asked about Public Enemy and his shift in stardom between the past two decades,
Flav explained how different and “more violent” Hip Hop is today while making a
call for the industry to tone down on the negativity and the violent ways. He
continued by saying that he and Chuck D are back in the studio working on
another Public Enemy album which garnered applause. When another journalist
inquired about his view on politics, Flav paused and said “I never really cared
yo!” and broke into his trademark laughter before putting back on his serious
face and saying “But I will say this…how the fuck is Bush going to try to clean
other people’s backyards when his is dirty!”
When Big Tigger entered the room and the question was posed “Do
you think BET really values you as a host”, the room fell silent as many
wondered if anyone at the network truly recognized how powerful Tigger had been
to the network’s aesthetic. Tigger pondered the question for a few moments as
the though crossed his mind and he tried to find a politically correct way to
answer. “I can’t say…” Tigger breathed
into the microphone. He said he was thankful of all the opportunity BET gave to
him but it was visible that Tigger was taken off guard by the question.
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Jermaine Dupri came to the room and everyone instantly wondered
about his next job. JD simply stated “There will be a press
conference on my next label move coming very soon.”
The “I Am Hip Hop” Icon Award winner, Grandmaster Flash,
took much of his time explaining how the power has been taken out of the DJs
hands to break records and new artists. He noted that program directors should
not be able to do what the DJ has done for years and that all new music should
go to DJs first and let them figure out whether or not they want to break a new
song. He also echoed Slim Thug and Remy Ma’s sentiments about going the indy
route and this has become the theme of the evening.
T.I. let everyone know that T.I. Vs Tip is on its way and
could possibly be around early next year. He also noted that DJ Drama’s album
is coming as well as PSC’s Big Country.
Chamillionaire has got to be the most humble artist walking
the earth right now as his gratefulness poured from his diamond studded grill.
He spoke of how hard he worked to crack platinum sales as well as the fact that
he hit the road with the goal that he wouldn’t stop performing until he went
platinum. He spoke of how he had to take his destiny into his own hands and how
the slick talk of his beef with Paul Wall painted him as the bad guy and gave
him a chip on his shoulder which motivated him to work hard toward his goals.
He also let it be known that he made a killing off of ringtone sales (“Ridin” did
about 3 million sales) and that artists need to make sure their ringtone deals
are straight.
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Last but not least, BET’s own Jeff Johnson fielded questions
about the recent elections and if the Democrats seizing both the House and the
Senate translated into a victory for African Americans. “No…” Jeff exclaimed, “We
need to stop putting our worth into these political groups and look out for our
best interests no matter what the political alignment.” He also let it be known
that “nothing is really going to change” and we still have a long way to go in
terms of gaining any political clout in the African American community. One journalist
inquired that since actors and wrestlers have won elections, would it be too
far off if an old school hip hop artist ran for and won a seat? “Only if they
are competent” Johnson stated.
So that wraps it up. Hopefully this gave you some insight on
the 1st Annual BET Hip Hop Awards. If you are wondering if it will
be in Atlanta again, the answer was delivered to us “if Atlanta hip hop is hot
then that’s where it will be at.”
