Yesterday, poet Maya Angelou expressed regret over appearing on Common’s “The Dreamer” after learning that he used the N-word on the cut. During an interview with Hot 97’s Angie Martinez, he said that he spoke with Angelou and that they agreed to disagree, but that there is no bad blood.
“I talked to her this morning and I talked to her before. She’s like a mother to me in many ways. She definitely doesn’t like the N-word, but I expressed to her before that I used it so we were able to agree to disagree,” he said. “She’s enthused to be on the album, she feels grateful to be on the album. I’m super grateful to have her on the album.”
Martinez said that he must have had to humble himself in the situation. He said that he did, but that he accepts her criticism and that she is going to make a statement on her prior comments.
“You just gotta take it. But that’s like my mother, but I got nothing but love. She’s actually supposed to make a statement today, letting people know,” he continued, “It’s a great thing, because she knows that sometimes, writers coming from different angles can separate good people. And it’s like, nah, that ain’t happening. We ain’t gonna let you separate us.”
haha….the clean version. Props to Common & Maya Angelou for getting this settled. I respect her feelings. While some people may not find the word derogatory, I feel if you find it offensive, please let it be known, you shouldn’t be quiet about that.
I agree, and personally speaking, I find the word to be exceptionally offensive. I’m saddened whenever I hear people – usually young dudes – saying it multiple times in one sentence. I’m old enough to know what the word really means, and it will never become a term of endearment in my view. There was a time, when even in poverty, we (blacks) maintained our dignity. Unfortunately, we now have a clss of blacks who don’t understand the meaning of self respect.
The word is ignorant, and needs to be left to the IGNORANT ones. Common could write, Krs, Mos Def, many cats could write other words in its place. Why do you hear it thru-out a CD, but how many times do you hear “Brother”?
It is because hip hop mirrors the streets. When was the last time you were hanging on the block and peeps were saying what’s up My Brother? It happens, but we greet each other typically otherwise. I think people get way to emotional over it. We have been calling each other that for years and until hip hop got mainstream did we people act like I don’t use that word. Really?
the ignorance comes the word. do your history and know what it is before you respond to what i’m saying
Can’t hate on her for this she’s intellectually above it
Maya Angelou is like A Mother/GrandMother figure to Black America she is someone you just cant argue with PERIOD!! regardles of who you are you take her criticism and keep it moving and I respect common for that
IF I WERE COMMON I WOULDA TOLD MAYA ANGELOU TO STFU AND WASH MY DISHES NIGGA!! I KEEPS IT REAL AND I’MA A MILLIONARE ASS NIGGA NIGGA!! BUT ON THE REAL I WOULD TOTALLY HUMP ON SOME MAYA BOOTY LIKE YEEEEEEAAAAH!!!!!!
hhahahahahhaahahah
u would never be allowed in maya’s circle but keep going tho we laugh at your stupidity yadig/yessir/texas/belly
nigga is not a normal thing to say and it ISNT a term of endearment or a simple slang term. if it were, then you could say it pretty much anywhere but the MAJORITY of society does not agree with the use of that word. how can anyone deny this? yea, people say it but they do so WALKING ON EGG SHELLS because they know how it makes them look. are you really going to tell me that you won’t be stereotyped or judged if you go around saying nigga this, nigga that. please. you’re just removing yourself from reality. the reality of our world is that if you go around talking like that, people will stereotype the hell out of you as a black person and you’re just feeding that stereotype no matter how intelligent you truly may be. you are judged by how you speak and how you carry yourself in public and in private. there is something called “integrity” which many black people have forgotten about.
Nigga is a racial insult and the majority of the USA knows that. there are some black people who have claimed to turn it into a term of endearment but thats just a load of bullshit. nobody who truly knows what the word means will call it a term of endearment or try to somehow twist its meaning. thats pure ignorance and lack of education. its especially sad when its a black person trying to defend their right to say nigga. so many blacks are turning in their grave.
the people who say nigga are so far removed from what black people actually experienced and went through in this country. my family is responsible for integrating schools in some states so that black people can even have an equal education and growing up, my grandparents had to go through REAL suffering and adversity. im talking about people being hung, dragged by cars, murdered, thrown in jail for trying to be equal. they had to beg to even go to school and then make their own bus system, their own businesses, their own schools. what do you know about that? funny, none of them feel the need to say nigga and to this day ive never heard it once from them. not once. i wonder why? maybe because they are intelligent enough to know it’s real meaning. maybe they don’t feel like insulting their own race that they worked so hard to uplift.
a person can’t possibly be that intelligent if they think saying nigga is ok or some kind of term of endearment. either that, or they’re not black. or if they’re black, they dont know enough about their history to care about saying something that is just an insult to their own race and everyone who had to die and suffer so they can sit on the internet and slap blacks in the face. even common looks like an idiot to me now. to sit up there and try to defend himself to MAYA ANGELOU of all people. it just makes me smh
sometimes you have to know when to pick your battles. he’s clearly wrong, but he just wants to defend his ignorance. he’s a hypocrite as well. go ahead, say nigga but do so knowing the consequences. you can say “dont judge me” and all that shit but at the end of the day, you’re feeding a stereotype that brings black people down every time you go around saying nigga. speaking like that, you’re never going to look intelligent to people who’ve had a few history lessons in this country.
Well said brother.
fuck a n word. and after we get through not using what racism not going still exist. what they going be jobs for all blacks right haha whether we use it or dont use it aint going change nothing
good thing black people in the past didn’t believe things wouldn’t change. you can’t change things if you don’t want to. i guarantee you there would still be racism if black people stopped saying nigga, but at least we would look like we have more respect for ourselves. right now it seems like black people lost their class. you can almost notice how it slowly went downhill years after mlk and malcolm died.
I agree bro ! Com does come off like an idiot to me too. Can’t support the idiots rappers.
If one is truly honoust to himself, one could say that the N word is super negative no mather how hard you pimp the word with your friends, the history behind the word is fucked up. Its a hundred procent diss to the elders who lived in the N word era
One of the reasons Chamillionaire dropped it from his rap vocab.
times change, language evolves. the nword has developed not only new connotations, but denotations as well.
i can picture that old bitch in the stuck up voice ” i didn’t know common was going use the n word”
you still a nigga in this society no matter what you do. throwing the word around is only a reminder. after we stop using it racism going still be here. cops still going take us to jail quicker than they would whites. still turn us down for jobs. still not rent to us. still give us shit on the job when we got one. e.t.c and whites going still use the word so what only let them use it and when they say it. it will make you make enough to kill them and go to jail. no use it take the power away from it and keep your freedom.
i see a lot of people saying “we have been using this term” for years and things like that. i dont really think ‘we’ have been calling each other that. you cant lump black people all into one boat when you talk about using the nword. its only certain black people and sadly to say its usually the ones living in the streets or the projects who dont know any better from my personal experience. i dont want to say it like that, but you dont really go to the suburbs where blacks are doing extremely well for themselves and hear them using nigga as part of their vocabulary. hell, its not even that common in middle class areas. so maybe it is a class thing. its interesting to see how black people will fight for their right to use a word that is completely disrespectful to everything black people have stood for over the years. a word that completely slaps our ancestors in the face. why would you want to even say nigga after you learn about what black people have gone through and what we still go through? why would you argue with people about how you should be allowed to say it and they cant? or make pathetic attempts to try and say it is some endearing term or argue about the “a” or “er” as if it matters, when a simple history lesson will prove you wrong. i just dont get it. its one thing to grow up around people saying it and then you pick it up out of being a product of your environment. that is understandable. however, it is another thing to be black, learn what it means to be black in this country, and make a choice to continue to use a word that is a complete insult to the black race.
Nigga nigga nigga nigga nigga nigga please, since ya on the dick why don’t you drop to ya knees.
Perfect example of how we all should operate.. Never be divided even though don’t agree with something someone says doesn’t mean I dislike just means we agree to disagree while we work toward a common objective@!
Thetruth –
Responses like that just go to show why certain African Americans just don’t get it. They bitch about life, about racism, about the double standard, yet turn around use and defend a word that they know gets their own killed every day. And spare us the “I beat up Krackers who use the word.” Yeah… Yeah… Yeah… Another cyber commando talkin like he’s a bad ass. If you called a white person a kracker, they’d probably put you in the hospital. Put the forty down and go ask a white person for a hug. It will greatly improve your outlook on life.
Word!
Thetruth –
Why would you assume a complete stranger would get mad over a nameless stranger using the N word? lol I don’t care if you call your kids nigga. “Tyrell… Did you take my bootleg copy of Soul Plane, nigga?” Of all the words one could use…. You’re a home owner remember (has absolutely nothing to do with the topic), and a college graduate (For the love of God don’t say Howard), there’s got to be more creativity in your vocabulary. Try this. Put down the Kush for 2-5 seconds, and Google some “urban friendly” terms that you and your friends can trade back and forth during this joyous Holiday Season. You’ll feel better as a person knowing you aren’t walking around acting like an extra from Menance 2 Society.