The Art v. The Artist

Earlier today, I read on Twitter about this conspiracy that Jay-Z helped in a ban against Chris Brown from performing during the BET Awards. In retaliation, a Chris Brown fan girl began a petition to ban Jay-Z from VMAs. I, of course, thought this was ridiculous. Chris Brown beat up Rihanna pretty badly (not just a slap, mind you), and yet his fans vehemently defend him. Why would anyone take so much offense to his banning when this altercation is still rather fresh in our minds? In fact, the article I was first thinking of writing was if this defense for Chris Brown is the very first case of mass battered woman syndrome. Because I've never seen so many people defend an undeniably guilty woman beater. Nobody liked Ike Turner.

Admittedly, I was more annoyed with 1) people's anti-Jay-Z stance [I'm a Jay-Z fan] and 2) people's obsession with Chris Brown, than I was with girls not understanding domestic violence (but trust me, it affected my opinion of the defenders) in this whole banning Chris Brown situation. So I began doing a supertweet session on it. Finally, in response to another person's tweet, I was about to write "It's not like Chris Brown holds a candle to Michael anyway." when it hit me, this Chris Brown situation is like my torrid relationship with Michael and his music.

Why?

1) Chris Brown beat Rihanna. MJ most likely molested children. Let's not split hairs with the "alleged" stuff. I know you wouldn't have wanted your kids hangin' at Neverland.

2) Chris Brown has a huge fanbase because of his music and dancing. Michael Jackson has an infinitely huge fan base because of his music and dancing.

3) Each has a fan base that is willing to overlook these misdeeds because of their celebrity and art.

And so I thought to myself, what really makes MJ so different from Chris Brown that makes it so I'm okay with listening to MJ's music and watching him perform, but I pass judgement on Brown? Just because MJ is that much more legendary and his music is that much better that he gets a pass? I mean, I thought about the "giving MJ a pass" thing already soon after his death, but it was really appropriate that this Chris Brown situation occurred so that I could frame it from this new perspective. I was really distraught with myself for being a hypocrite.

What helped me through this was this article from Racialicious discussing Michael Jackson's death from the perspective of a child abuse survivor who happened to also be an MJ fan. I fully recommend it. In it, the writer discusses the complexities of a person and being able to enjoy the music that shaped his childhood, while never forgetting the atrocities done. Regarding separation of music and art, it basically says that just because you enjoy the music doesn't mean you approve of their personal actions. I don't try to defend Michael's actions just because of his music, even if I love the music. I still reject him as a person.

I'll also admit that I still sing Chris Brown's "With You" on my Lips karaoke video game. And I can't help but dance to T-Pain & Chris Brown's "Freeze". I still have Chris Brown's music deleted and I don't listen to his music on purpose much. But not the same with Michael's. I still have those. I believe that it's because Michael's music means more to me than Chris Brown's ever did.

But going back to these Chris Brown defenders, I have to say it still bothers me. And it's because I know that this isn't the same situation. These big Chris Brown fans aren't separating the music from the person. Check some samples of the tweets:

jay z is a bitch, he should of let chris brown perform cause jay z cant dance like chriss!!!!!!!!!!!!

You can say that again Andre. BET = Sucked. Epic fail.Breezy should have opened the show. He's too good for ghetto BET awards. (Editor's Note: This one was from the actual writer of the online Ban Jay-Z petition)

I FEEL SO SORRY 4 CHRIS BROWN, WHY IS EVERY1 HATING ON HIM! FUCK JAY-Z

CHRIS BROWN IS THE MAN. NO MATTER WAT THAT UGLY BASTARD JAY-Z SAYS!!

Well, none of these are exactly proof positive that they aren't separating music and man, but I know deep down that he as a person and his livelihood matter as much as just the music itself. There's a reason they care whether he performed or not. You know they feel that way too. Don't lie to yourself.

Anyway, the lesson here? In situations like these: Learn to enjoy the music while rejecting the artist. It's not really as simple as that, but it's how I deal.

Post Script Note: Getting back onto the Chris Brown hater wagon: It's not like Chris Brown had to be on that show to give MJ a proper tribute. If Chris Brown is the closest thing we got to MJ, then Pop music is in trouble. People are acting like (and actually saying that) MJ himself would've been pissed off that Chris Brown didn't performed. They must be on the crack.

Nobody Cares About the Last Airbender

The M. Night Shyamalan teaser premiered the other night on MTV. *middle finger*

You can find a plethora of information here on racebending.com. This entry by Derek Kirk Kim is probably my favorite argument for how the casting of the live action Avatar movie is RACIST.

If you've read any of my Avatar-related twitter comments, or, I dunno read what I just wrote in the past two sentences, you'll know where I stand on the casting of the live action movie. If you don't see the racism in it, you're fooling yourself. Plain and simple. I've heard all the arguments for this so-called "multiracial" casting, but they barely have legs to stand on, and all of those people have become just apologists for the cause. So this will not be an argument on whether the casting is racist or not. Rather, I want to analyze why the hell people aren't up in arms about this whole damn thing. Come on people!! This shit is as racist as it gets.

If the cartoon was about a mystical African world which starred a black character in the lead role, and we casted some really really dark FILIPINO GUY for the movie (because trust me, I've seen some Filipino guys darker than black dudes I know), people would go APE SHIT! There'd be riots in the streets. Not only would black folks be up in arms, but every other racial group wouldn't stand for it either. And furthermore, the execs in charge would be ashamed as hell to release it. No no no, this isn't wouldn't just be Soul Man, or Bamboozled we're talking here. Those barely made a blip in the American conscious because they didn't have this huge fanbase. Imagine that this fictional mystical African show was as popular with both children and adults as Avatar, which was so money that they already planned a trilogy for the damn thing. It'd be like Harry Potter/Chronicles of Narnia/Lord of the Rings. So yeah, a miscast of a Filipino dude into a Black dude's role would matter a lot to a ton of people. Like I said: EVERYBODY WOULD GO APE SHIT. It'd probably even get to CNN. Even Fox News would be calling it out just to prove they weren't racists. And yet, this did not happen when Avatar's casting was announced. Why? Oh, I dunno... probably because the people getting fucked over right with this casting are ASIANS.

It's true. So very, sadly true. America seems to give a pass to racism against Asians more than any other ethnic minority. What I mean is nobody seems to care when it's us. Sadly, not even us Asians, as a whole, care. Maybe it's that old sterotype that nobody wants to rock the boat, so we just keep to ourselves. I don't know. Oh, sure, there are people out there protesting during the filming, but clearly not enough to make the studio change their mind about anything.

Some of my friends just don't care. They worry more that the story won't be told right. But let's say it is awesome. That it is successful. Kids won't inherently notice the difference that a white actor is in the lead role. No, because that's the norm. And that's the problem. Avatar was a chance to make it the norm. Media is just a small part in the racist culture in America, but believe me when I say that it does matter. I can still list off tons of cartoons and movies that influenced me as a child. Avatar could be oe of those movies for this generation. People just don't care.

How apathetic have we been? This isn't the first time a white person stole a major role from an Asian and passed themself off in Yellowface. There's that one White dude who famously stole Bruce Lee's role and ended up making a career out of Yellowface. Yeah, I went there. David Carradine. I don't have anything against the dude himself, so no disrespect to his death or anything. But it still doesn't change the fact that his career was totally bogus. What's even sadder is that while I find it okay that people hoped that he rested in peace, that they honored his lifelong career of Yellowface. People reminiscing on how great he was as Cain. Saying that he will walk the West forever with his Kung FU. Man, fuck that. If the dude made a career out of (and I'm sorry to use this again, but it's effective) blackface, it would be shameful. Say a white dude played Shaft, nobody'd be all "Awwww, the white dude acting as a black guy passed away. Forever live Shaft."

Fast forward to this generation, and we still haven't gotten it right. The trailer is out (hell no, I won't link it to you), and the shooting is in process as we speak. It's much too late to fix that problem. The best we can do now is spread the word and not go to the theaters in protest. I've gotten a lot off my chest now, but I can't guarantee I'll stop here. I'll probably be back when the full trailer, and the full movie come out.

PS, And think about it. What would Mako, the voice of Iroh, say if he were alive to see this? He is the man who helped found East West Players so that Asian Americans had a place to perform. It's just funny that the producers, knowing the show was later dedicated to him, would do the things he worked hard to combat.

Reflection Eternal - Back Again

I'm one of the very few who like Kweli over Mos. I know he doesn't have as good a rhythmic flow as his partner, but Talib has refined that more. And besides that, the chorus is always stuck in my head.

Talib Kweli + Hi Tek-Reflection Eternal -Back Again-Vid Premiere

Best Burger in the Bay: Joe's at Westlake

As a way to spend my time this summer, and as a fun project, I decided that I would search for the Best Burger in the Bay Area. Yeah, you've probably seen a million threads on Yelp and Chowhound about it, but I decided that I would do my own search for my for friends, my 2 blog followers, and for my own amusement.

Interestingly enough, this whole thing started because I was determined to prove Bud's Burgers is not, in fact, as good as my Vallejo friends claim. They never said it was the best, but the way someone says "Bud's Burrrrrrrrrgerrrrrrs" makes you think Jesus Christ made it from kobe beef racks. Afterwards, I had a conversation with friends about making burgers and wanting a great burger recipe, which prompted to me to head out into the Bay and search for the Holy Ground. Anyway, since my hater period, I've decided to go through this whole thing unbiased. I assure you that there is no malicious intent, as I love my Vallejo peoples, and I want to be as fair as humanly possible. Who knows? Maybe they're right.

Please be advised that this whole thing is completely subjective and all in fun; I do not claim to be a burger or food expert, and moreover, my sense of smell is f*cked up. Since my brain injury several years ago, my lost sense of smell has been coming back, but not in the right way (kinda like how raising someone back from the dead in Buffy always ended up wrong).

Some rules I've set that I might break
- This whole series will judge only the burgers. Not the fries. Not the service. Not the drinks. Not the restaurant. The burger and only the burger. But just in case you're wondering, I'll also mention the other stuff, but it will not be included in the score.
- The burger must be made of ground meat. This means no sliced steak or any fancy shmancy crap. Stuff that goes through the grinder. Note that I said "meat", which means I can include Turkey, Buffalo, Ostrich, Graboids, Boca, or anything else they can come up with.
- Any type of burger, special or not, counts. Regular Cheeseburger, 13 Dollar Guacamole Burger, Kobe Beef Burgers, Burgerstuffed Burgers with Burger as a Bun Bound in Bacon.
- Any place will do. Diners, Drives, PF Chang's, Fancy Shmancy's, Jack In The Box, Pierre's Hella Expensive We Only Drink The Best Wine Restaurant*. Don't matter. If it's a burger, it'll count. In fact, if you think you can make a better burger than that, and you're willing to make me the best burger, then I will come over to your house and eat it.

And with that out of the way, let's get to our first contender:

The "Cheeseburger" at Joe's of Westlake (Daly City, CA)


That, right there, is the "Cheeseburger" from Joe's. Nope, there is no special name to that little sucka right there. There was no description either. It just read:

Cheeseburger ............................$10.95

Neither did I ask for anything special. Just ordered it medium rare. And what came to me was a charbroiled burger on a (French? Italian?) roll with what I think was melted Monterey Jack cheese. Nothing else on it. As you can see, it came pretty red, but I was okay with that, since I do like my burgers pretty rare. So how'd it do?

Well, at first bite, that burger was really freakin juicy. It had a lot of flavor to it, and with the melted cheese to soften the strength of the juices, I think it really tasted quite good. The texture of the burger itself was really where it was at. Even though the meat wasn't falling apart, it didn't feel like one meshed up patty at all. It all just separated as I bit and chew, and I really loved that. I swear the cow that went into this beef probably strolled right into the restaurant and practically begged to take a dip in the grinder, it seemed that fresh. I enjoyed those first few bites.

Then came the hard truth: the bun sucked. Midway through eating the burger, I asked Jen what she thought, and she had the same complaint I did: The roll, as interesting and tasty as it looked, was tough to bite through. I literally had to bite and rip the bread off with my teeth like a T-Rex gnawing on an M1 Abrams tank. It really kept me from enjoying the meat. No bun should be distracting you from the main attraction of the sandwich, and it really did. That dropped it some points.

Now toward the end, as I was getting fuller, I started to notice only the burnt taste of the burger. I understand that this is an effect of the charbroiling. And besides that, I was also not as hungry as I was at the beginning of dinner. Not to mention that as I remember having colds with no smell, lightly burned things tasted a lot more burnt than I thought it would. So considering those things, maybe a normal person wouldn't notice or care, but to me it made those last bites really unappealing. Since I couldn't be sure about it, I took only half a point from the burger.

So the final verdict?

6.5 out of 10

If it wasn't for the bun and the overwhelmingly burnt taste, it could've scored anywhere from an 8 to a 9. I definitely don't think this was the best burger. I give it a minor recommendation, if you're in the area, but not just for the burger. Check in my notes to see why.

Notes

- Lots and lots of old people there. I'm not entirely convinced the place isn't right next to a retirement home. Plus or minus? Well, there're no hipster kids there doin the jerk or gettin all rambunctioned (yeah, I made that up), so I'll give that a plus.

- It's an old time Italian spot, and the architecture looks like a place my grandma used to live at in San Diego. It also means the maitre'd and waiters were all dudes in tuxes. Very cool. I didn't get the dudes in the goomba-ass Italian suits though. Because they might ice me.

- Jen's Chicken Parmigiana was much better than mine. And it was freakin HUUUGE! She didn't enjoy the wine sauce as much as I did, but she hella loved the spaghetti. As did I. I was pretty jealous that she got that damn spaghetti.

- And finally, we did not ask for water.

- Shame on you, Joe. Shame.

* Only if I can afford. This means within 10% of my 2 week paycheck.

Jay-Z "Death of Autotune"

If you follow Hip Hop on the Internet at all, you've probably heard of Jay-Z's "Death of Autotune" by now. Jay-Z's reasoning? "...to draw a line in the sand. This is what I do."

I've read other blogs mention how this is Jay-Z showing his marketing prowess and building controversy hype for his own album a la 50 Cent. I've no doubt this is part of the reason. But I think this also has shown how much Hova has matured these years.

Ever since Kingdom Come, Jay-Z's been showing his age in a good way. With songs like "30 Something" and "Minority Report", Jay touched on growing older and actually waxed on the Katrina problem. And further back, on the Black Album, he's wished to be "lyrically like Talib Kweli". In fact, that was probably the first time that Jay-Z showed us he was more than just a clever flossy gangsta rapper. It showed he really cared about the state of hip hop, and the words that he chooses.

Since then, I've noticed his behavior and collaboration choices in the industry point toward a more conscious, more "pure", more lyrical, hip hop. He executive produced Lupe Fiasco's first album, signed Jadakiss to Roc-a-Fella, rapped alongside Stic.Man and M1 of Dead Prez, and way back when he showed some conscious rap on Kweli's "Get By Remix". For sure, Jay-Z's become the elder statesman of hip hop, and lucky for us, he's still got the skill.

Which brings us to his anti-autotune war cry. Here we see where Jay's heart lies with all the autotuning nonsense. It's gotten out of hand and prevented hip hop from growing lyrically. Everyone's busy trying to be R&B singers and forgetting what the music is all about. While other people have called this out already, President Carter is the only guy with enough clout to make waves like this. But with Autotune still popular, can one song really squash a fad?

P.S. I'm not saying Autotune should be killed. I believe T-Pain, for all his inability to sing minus a machine, still makes some damn good catchy songs that are relatable to the everyman. You can't deny his melodic skills and fun demeanor. It's all the other guys abusing this crap that annoy me. I mean, Mary J autotuned her beautiful voice just to get on. That's how crappy things have gotten.

Joe Quesada: Marvel Head Honcho

Okay okay, so my suggestion to him was about penises. But, you know, he called me a genius. Just sayin…

Feet in the ground, sittin low, plantin that rice.

It's been a while since I posted anything, written anything really. A few months ago I had high hopes for getting an artist for my book. It didn't pan out, and that really knocked me down a few good notches. You can't understand the excitement of finishing that first good script til it's done. And it is. But there's no biting.

Since then I've just been hanging back, very discouraged. I was thinking, maybe it's not for me. But then I go to Wondercon and Matt Fraction has me thinking things all over again. My friend Kedd's got a small story out, and Joey's thinking of getting it all started again too. Not to mention that some of the free books I picked up from small press and whatnot (not including Conjoined Comics and Kedd/Randy's), seemed pretty weak. No disrespect, but I really do feel like my book was a lot better written.

It's hard not to come off as arrogant, and I swear I'm not, but I've felt like this a couple of times: I write things like music, poetry, or these new comics and I feel like I'm on top of the world. Then, at some point, I just find myself doubting and thinking I'm just not good enough. I'm mediocre. But then, I see some of the things around me, other artists, who have come further than I have, and I realize I have the ability to write things just as good as, if not better than, them.

So I'm at that point again, where I think I can make a go of it. I'm working harder this time. My goal is at least two, hopefully three, issues of my current comic project, a pitch to Marvel, a secret project, two new songs, and maybe just maybe a few ideas for a musical all by June. It's a hefty load, but I think if I just set my deadlines and stick to them, I can do it.