Thursday, March 09, 2017

Notorious BIG - 2 decades later

2 decades ago today, rapper Notorious BIG died! He was only 24 years old!

Notorious BIG


Notorious BIG, whose real name was Chrisopher Wallace, was a man with many nicknames : Biggie, Biggie Smalls, the Black Frank White.

He grew up in Brooklyn with his single mother who was an immigrant from Jamaica.  As a kid, he had academic potential, but he had big money dreams that couldn't wait. He started selling drugs as a teen which landed him in jail. At the same time, he started rapping. Rap music was his ticket to make legal money.


1. Music Career


Notorious BIG hooked up with Sean Combs, another man with many nicknames (Puffy, Puff Daddy, Diddy, Sean John). Puffy was a producer who just left Uptown Records (under Andre Harrell) and started his own record label Bad Boy Records.

It was a start of a short but legendary music career.

Biggie had a mind that could come up with vivid stories with many rhymes.  He was very versatile with his subject matter, as he talked about the struggles growing up in the ghetto ("Everyday Struggle"), living a life of criminal activities ("Gimme the Loot","Warning"), living with paranoia and depression ("Suicidal Thoughts"), transitioning away from the negative to positive lifestyle ("Juicy"), and celebrating the luxury life ("Big Poppa"). And that's just from his 1st album "Ready to Die"


The first single from the album was "Juicy", which sampled Mtume's "Juicy Fruit".  That song and video was about his attempt to change his lifestyle, transitioning from drug dealing towards making legal money. He talked about living in the ghetto, struggling to get money to feed his daughter, dropping out of high school and about "stereotypes of black male misunderstood, but still all good". He talks about his aspirations of living in luxury and  "living life without fear". As he says, he "went from negative to positive"

The video showed his old neighborhood in Brooklyn, a prison cell, and luxury mansion with a swimming pool.

"Juicy" by Notorious BIG




Just listening to that song and watching that video brings tears to my eyes, about how someone with so many aspirations to overcome his past to be a more positive person can die so young only a few years later.


Biggie would probably tell us to not just mourn his death, but to celebrate his life too! That comes with his 2nd hit, the one that really got MTV airplay -- "Big Poppa". It was a feel good track that sampled Isley Brother's "Between the Sheets" and added the g-funk sound to sound the West Coast rap songs that were popular at the time. The song was about living the luxury life and getting laid with many women. It's the life of a Playa!  It's the life many young men aspire to!

"Big Poppa" by Notorious BIG


There was also the gangsta track "Warning", which starts out with "who the f--- is this,paging me at 5:46 in the morning, crack of a dawning, now I'm yawning". That pops into my mind when my phone rings when I don't feel like answering!

"Warning" by Notorious BIG


Then there is this smooth track "One More Chance", featuring Faith Evans, a woman he married only 9 days after he met her. Obviously, that doesn't sound like a recipe for a good relationship. Plus, Biggie wasn't going to give his playa lifestyle. 


Notorious BIG also brought his Brooklyn crew  Junior Mafia to the rap game. Within the Junior Mafia included his close friend Lil Cease and his mistress Lil Kim. 

Whereas Biggie introduced himself as a ghetto drug dealer now living in luxury, Junior Mafia introduced themselves living in luxury, which started the trend I call "snob rap" where rappers spend nearly every song bragging about the luxuries. While some of that was already going on in the 80's, this trend went to a much higher level in the following years with Puff Daddy, Ma$e, Jay-Z making hit records bragging about their luxuries.

Here's the video that started the "snob rap" trend: Playa's Anthem

"Playa's Lifestyle" by Junior Mafia featuring Notorious BIG


Junior Mafia also had the song featuring just Biggie and Lil Kim "Get Money". It's not just about getting money, but the jealousy and divisiveness it causes. Lil Kim's verse on this track started the trend for female rappers to say really outrageous and sexual things without shame. This led the way for her other female rappers like Foxy Brown, Khia, Trina, and Nicki Minaj. 


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Afterwards, it was time to go back to his solo career.His 2nd album "Life After Death"  came out a few weeks after his death.

The only video he made from that album was also his last "Hypnotize".  It was a major club hit, something that ruled the dance floor to this very day. The video had a James Bond theme that really didn't match the lyrics of the song (I eye-roll when music videos don't match the lyrics of the song......sorry)

Puff Daddy made another video from that album, for the song "Mo Money, Mo Problems". The song had a disco vibe and featured Puff Daddy and a new rapper Ma$e. And of course, Biggie had the hottest verse, where he spelled out"BIG POPPA" and said "no info for the DEA".



The album had more songs celebrating the luxury life (,"I Love the Dough" w/Jay-Z), but also discussed the negative side of fame ("My Downfall", "Long Kiss Goodnight", "Mo Money, Mo Problems"). He also had more tales of criminal activities ("Last Day" w/the Lox) as well as a warning to those who want to live the criminal life ("The Ten Crack Commandments). He had songs about his  sexual adventures ("Nasty Boy", "F--- You Tonight" w/R Kelly).  He had inspirational songs ("Sky's the Limit") and a battle of the sexes ("Another" w/Lil Kim). He had Bone Thugs n Harmony collabo ("Notorious Thugs").

While he was mostly a rapper, he also showed a singing talent with "Play Hater". 


"Playa Hater" by Notorious BIG and Puff Daddy



And of course, there was "Going Back to Cali", a  song to show everyone that he respected California and that he had great times visiting there. But not everyone wanted to hear that, as you'll find out why ....................


2.  East Coast, West Coast and the Rivalry with 2pac



As mentioned earlier, the Notorious BIG was from New York. New York was where rap started. But in 1994, when his 1st record was released, West Coast rappers ruled the charts. There was bitterness between the East Coast and West Coast rap communities.

While most of his "Ready to Die" album had an East Coast sound, his major hit  "Big Poppa" song sounded like a West Coast jam. That song was meant to help him gain West Coast fans.

However, that didn't keep him from away the coastal rivalries.

What really fueled the fire was when 2pac was invited to a recording studio in which Notorious BIG & Puff Daddy was present. In the first floor of the building, 2pac was shot in an armed robbery. This made him very paranoid and accused both rappers of setting him up to be killed.

A few months later, there was the Source Awards held in New York, Suge Knight, the head of the popular West Coast record label Death Row Records was there to ridicule Puff Daddy on stage. This was war.

Suge Knight was also friends with 2pac, and both teamed up to battle Notorious BIG and Puff Daddy.

 Even though 2pac grew up in New York, he later moved to Oakland as a teenager, which made him a "West Coast rapper". His affiliation with Suge Knight and Death Row Records solidified his position as a West Coast rapper, along with his "California Love" song and his yelling of "Westside" on many songs.

So there it was: Notorious BIG  & Puff Daddy representing the East Coast,  Suge Knight & 2pac representing the West Coast.

Even though both sides insisted they weren't against everyone from the other coast, in the mind of rap fanatics, it didn't matter.

VIBE magazine made the issue worse with their magazine cover showing a photo of Notorious  BIG and Puff Daddy, with the words "East vs West", giving the impression that they wanted war with the West Coast.

Vibe Magazine


As mentioned earlier, Biggie married Faith Evans after only 9 days of meeting. Biggie still wanted to live the playa lifestyle, he was polyamorous, something Faith Evans wanted no part of.  They had constant arguments.

Then one day, away from Biggie, she met 2pac at a party. They took a picture together. This doesn't seem scandalous now in the era where people walk up to celebrities, take a selfie, and walk away right after, and then share it on social media. But in that era, Facebook and Instagram didn't exist yet.

2pac then used that photo against Biggie, and he bragged about having sex with his wife in his song  "Hit Em Up". That song, he taunted and threatened both Biggie & Puffy, as well as other rappers friendly to them (ie Junior Mafia, Lil Kim, Mobb Deep).

On September 7, 1996,  Suge Knight & 2pac were riding the streets of Las Vegas, They already left a Mike Tyson boxing match, had their own fight with Crips, and were now headed to a nightclub to party. Then gunshots were blasted. Both men were hit, but 2pac got most of the bullets. Suge Knight survived, 2pac died a few days later.


Nobody was arrested for 2pac's murder, but some rap fanatics were ready to blame Biggie & Puffy! Both were warned not to visit California anytime soon.

But Biggie & Puffy insisted they weren't against everyone from California, that their beef was only with Suge Knight & 2pac.


Both Biggie & Puffy visited California in March 1997 to promote Biggie's upcoming album and did interviews with local radio stations. And of course, attend the Soul Train Awards. After the award show, it was party time. They went to a private party with many hip-hop/R&B industry people attended.  Biggie & Puffy were having a great time.

Afterwards, they both went in separate cars. The car Biggie was riding in got hit with gunshots. Just 6 months after the same happened to 2pac.

This was seen as retaliation.

It was a sad ending to a legendary life.

3. Life After Biggie's Life


However, his album "Life After Death" came out a few weeks later and gained even more popularity than his legendary 1st album. His songs became major hits.

And Puff Daddy had his own album that year "No Way Out", which had Biggie's vocals on many tracks.  It was a bittersweet year for Puff Daddy, as his music became super-popular, but his friend Biggie no longer around to share in his success.

Puff Daddy had his tribute to his friend, with "I'll BE Missing You", featuring Faith Evans and 112. The song sampled The Police "Every Breath You Take"

"I'll Be Missing You"  by Puff Daddy, Faith Evans and 112


Also the No Way Out album, was the song "Victory" with Puff Daddy, Notorious BIG and Busta Rhymes. As always Biggie had the strongest presence on the song! The song had a movie score sound, as it sampled a song from the "Rocky" movie.


"Victory" by Puff Daddy, Notorious BIG and Busta Rhymes


Biggie's unreleased tracks were later released in an album "Born Again" in 1999. It didn't have that many hits, it did have the "Notorious" song that sampled Duran Duran.

"Notorious BIG" by Notorious BIG, Puff Daddy & Lil Kim. 


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The popularity of Puff Daddy's music in 1997 led to a revival of New York rap's popularity.  Biggie's friends like Lil Kim, and Jay-Z became hip-hop superstars. Previously lesser known New York rappers like Fat Joe, Big Pun, Mobb Deep, Foxy Brown, Noriega and DMX became stars too!


However, the Southern rappers basically took over the rap world in the 21st century.  Atlanta became the new center of hip-hop as well as African-American culture in general.

New York and Los Angeles still have new rap stars every so often, but they no longer dominated the hip-hop scene like they did when Biggie & 2pac were making hits.

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In 2009, "Notorious", a movie based on Notorious BIG's life was released. It was in movie theaters and is now available on DVD.

"Notorious" movie poster


I saw it on DVD, and it was very interesting to see all that I read and heard from interviews being acted out.

The movie critics gave it mixed reviews. Who cares about that, the story was interesting and it was acted out great. I totally recommend it to anyone interested in hip-hop history!




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Rap music is still following Puff Daddy's formula of club-friendly hits, but gangsta rap no longer dominate the rap scene like it did when Biggie and 2pac were making hits.
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However, Biggie's music is still get played at the nightclubs and car stereos even 2 decades later. People still get sentimental about "Juicy". While Bigigie never achieved the dream of "living life without fear", the song is still a good reminder of "going from positive to negative".


Rest in peace Biggie. We still miss you!

Wednesday, March 08, 2017

Gender double standards and presidential elections

Did sexism cost Hillary Clinton the election? Could a woman be a loudmouth like Donald Trump and still win?


Well, someone put that to the test. 2 professors set up an theatrical re-enactment with a a woman play the role of Donald Trump, and a man play the role of Hillary Clinton. The EXACT words, tone and hand motions made in this role playing.


Eileen Reynolds, “What if Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton Had Swapped Genders?,” NYU News, February 28, 2017

Amber Jamieson, “If Trump were a woman: play swaps presidential candidates' genders,” The Guardian, January 29, 2017

Ed Krayewski, “Gender-Reversed Presidential Debate Reveals Trump’s Allure to Clinton Voters,” Reason, March 8, 2017


The ones who put on this play was expecting (before starting work on the re-enactments) that "people wouldn't tolerate a woman acting like Trump, people would be more receptive to Hillary if she was a man"

But once the re-enactments happened and the audience watched, the results were different.

People weren't so disturbed when a woman showed the same exact fiesty, aggressive, loudmouth tactics that Trump used in the debates.  One of the audience members stated it reminded him of his auntie, another said it reminded her of a school principal that was strict but caring.

However, people were shocked how they disturbed they were when the man showed the same evasive, elitist, condescending tones that Hillary showed in debates!  The man who acted like Hillary was seen as sleazy and man-splaining!

just one sample video



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You see, this suprised many Radical Feminists, who religiously believed that the general public didn't like aggressive feisty women. These feminist get all their information from feminist literature and feminists blogs,  and the only disagreement they is from male supremacists who write nasty emails/tweets to them! In this echo chamber, you're either a Radical Feminist or a Male Supremacist!

So this caused some real confusion when they noticed their reactions to a woman acting like Trump and a man acting like Hillary!

Like "whoah, I'm really as sexist as the Male Supremacists who write nasty notes to me"

Also, this helps them understand their confusion of why so many millenial females weren't so enamored with Hillary Clinton and were so enthusiastic about Bernie Sanders, a man old enough to be their grandfathers. Gloria Steinem accused those females of supporting Sanders because that's where they boys are!

No, they supported Sanders because he was feisty for left-wing causes, whereas Hillary Clinton acted entitled to women votes and expected them to ignore her hawkish foreign policies and corporate ties.

Hillary Clinton was just lucky Bernie Sanders started his campaign way behind in name recognition and money. 

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Meanwhile, men are constantly shamed for being "sexist pigs" just for existing. This makes them hesitant to point out real character flaws in women! Men are afraid to be called "sexists". Men are afraid of being accused of perpetuating "patriarchy" and "rape culture".  Therefore, they are scared to point out Hillary Clinton's character flaws.

Women who noticed Hillary Clinton's flaws were scared of being accused of "internalized oppression" and "holding women back".

But whoah, nobody is scared to point the same exact character flaws when a male shows the same exact elitist, condescending words and demeanor that Hillary Clinton showed in the debates.

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Our cultures love feisty women. Maybe the Alt-Right message boards don't show that, but everyone else does.

Just look at the popularity of loud, feisty women over the years: Roseanne Barr, Wanda Sykes, Sarah Silverman. Look at the portrayals of the feisty Italian/Latina aunties & grandmas on TV shows. Loud and lovable characters! 


Or look at the popularity of Tomi Lahren  -- very loud, very feisty, and a Donald Trump supporter. She could easily get the same voters and win the same states that Donald Trump got! Her UNLV ties might even giver her a fighting chance to win Nevada and other Western states that Trump lost.

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Meanwhile, Donald Trump's loudmouth ways is similar to Jesse Ventura. Bold, opinionated and unapologetic.

But there's a difference! 

Jesse Ventura got elected governor of Minnesota, a state that Trump lost!

Jesse Ventura could've won more states than Trump because Jesse Ventura isn't a racist and could've picked up Latino-heavy states that Trump lost like Nevada, New Mexico, Colorado and even California!

While Trump won Texas and Arizona (both traditionally Republican states), he had a much lower margin of victory than George W. Bush got in both states! That's because Bush respected the Latinos and got more Latino voters than your average Republican.

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So basically Hillary Clinton didn't lose because of sexism. She was an evasive, elitist,  condescending person who got most of her votes because people feared Donald Trump! This fear allowed her to win Latino-heavy states that Bush won (ie Nevada, Colorado, New Mexico). 

Donald Trump won because people love a feisty fighter, a trait that they admire about their mothers, aunties & grandmothers.  The problem was that Donald Trump used his feistyness to start his campaign demonizing Mexican immigrants. 

In other words, race was a much HUGER  factor than gender in the last election.

The Democrats need to find a candidate who is feisty but not condescending! A candidate that is intelligent but not elitist! A candidate who tells it like it us instead of being evasive.   A candidate that can speak to working class European-Americans while still fiercely defending the rights of immigrants and other minorities.

It's time to put the gender card away. A woman candidate needs to have the same appealing characteristics as a male candidate.

If Barack Obama can charm the nation to elect him, so can a woman! Just got to be the right one!


Sunday, March 05, 2017

In memory of Donnie Alporque

March 2, my former co-worker Donnie Alporque passed away


Here's what I posted on facebook that day









The guy in the hat is Donnie Alporque, who was working at Ala Moana's Macy's the first time I was working there! He did my interview and got me hired! He was a very helpful person who was very uplifting even when I made a mistake. Also, he had a great sense of humor!

It has come to my attention that he has passed away earlier this morning! Rest in peace my friend!




As the above statement said, I first met Donnie at a job interview at Ala Moana Macy's!

That was during the summer of 2011.

I had previous Macy's work experience at Kahala Mall during the holiday season of 2010! I was a seasonal hire as recovery associate (folding clothes, re-organizing the items on the selling floor).  However, that was only a seasonal job.

Around the same time, I was working for the DOE as both a para-professional tutor at Niu Valley Middle School (NVMS), and as a substitute teacher.

However, at the end of the school year, I got laid off from NVMS, and there wasn't any substitute teaching work during the summer.  

So I decided to search for a job with Macy's  since I had some familiarity with the company.

However, there were no recovery associate positions available outside of the holiday season. 

So I had to settle for a sales associate position.

When I interviewed with Donnie, it seemed like we connected very well. He was able to put me at ease, and he had a sense of humor about my discussions about my previous work experience at the other Macy's. 

After my interview, he told me, he'll call back later that day.

SO I decided to take a walk around Ala Moana Shopping Center. After a half-hour, I took out my flip-phone and noticed a message. It was Donnie telling me I was hired.   I was going to be a sales associate at the home textiles section. 

His main position was in men's shoes, which was on a different floor, so we didn't see each other everyday. But he would occasionally stop by and check on my progress.

He was also really chill when I made an error at the cash register. He just showed me what to do in the same situation the next time it happens, and says "it's alright, everyone made mistakes".

He was epitome of the Magic of Macy's

I would've loved to work with him forever!

However, only a few months after I was hired, Donnie moved to a different Macy's, that one being in Kailua (that one shut down a few years later)

As for my progress as a sales associate, it didn't last that long. When the 2011 holiday season came up, I decided to switch away from the sales associate position to the recovery associate position (same position I had the previous holiday season at Kahala Macy's). Long story short, I liked the recovery associate position better. 

After that holiday season, I was laid off from Macy's, though I did come back for the holiday seasons for the  2012 (sales) and 2013 (recovery).  After that, I had other things going on!

I did see Donnie visit Ala Moana Macy's a few times after he switch stories, and it was like meeting an old friend. 

I also found him on facebook. He did share his joys, though he did share something personal: he came out of the closet to his family. Many people (including me) told him that we still respected him, that him being LGBT didn't bother us. He did admit that he was overwhelmed by the assurances by his facebook friends, and he admitted that he wasn't accustomed to being praised because  for a long time, he had self-esteem issues partly because of the stigma of being LGBT! I actually had tears in my eyes reading that because based on my interactions with him, he had a lot to be proud of, a lot of reasons he should be having high self-esteem.

Also, reading that made me feel guilty for saying negative things about homosexuality when I was younger. By the time I met Donnie, I was already a supporter of LGBT rights so he never heard me say those negative things I used to say. But still, I felt guilty for making negative and inappropriate remarks about people like him before I met him. 


I did see a video of the Donnie being part of the Gay Men's Choir singing spiritual songs, and I was happy that he finally felt like he belonged, that he found a refuge where he didn't have to feel ashamed about his sexual orientation. 

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More recently, I heard news that Donnie  suffered a stroke and was in a coma. He was at Straub Medical Center.  I didn't know how much time he had left, but I decided to write a letter to his family and visit the hospital. I wasn't sure if I was going to allowed to visit his room there, but I decided to stop by. If I wasn't allowed to visit, I would've just left it at the nurse's desk.

When I found the room, I asked the woman standing outside if this was Donnie's room. She said yes, but also wait a few minutes, as the doctors were inside. After a few minutes, we went in. That woman was his sister, and I gave her my letter to my family.  We discussed our memories with Donnie. I told her about my time with him at Macy's, and his generous and humorous spirit.

Donnie was in a coma and relied on an oxygen tube. It was so heartbreaking to see a formerly active guy in that condition. His sister suggested that I talk to him even though he was in that condition.  I did say a last few words to him and thanked him for being in my life even if only for a brief time. 

After words, I posted this on facebook.




Donnie Alporque was one of my favorite people to work with when I was at Macy's. He recently had a stroke and is intensive care. I just visited him and talked to one of his relatives as we reflected on his life! It was sad to see a once lively man in the condition he in now :'(

A few days later, he passed away!

Thank you Donnie for being a great influence in my life. I hope to meet you again in the afterlife