Yesterday, the radio opera was Aida, by Verdi, from the Los Angeles Opera. Several years ago, the Met broadcast Aida one Saturday with Violeta Urmana (who is absolutely competent, but not, IMO, terribly exciting.) Peter Gelb announced from the stage that Ms. Urmana was unwell and the role would be sung by Latonia Moore (of whom I hd never heard, and that was probably true for most of the audience.) Before the first act was over, I was on Google looking her up – I was that impressed. I knew she would, before too long, be a star in her own right, not a backup. In this broadast, she was the star, singing Aida as an established diva in her own right. I’m not always right in my predictions – but boy, was I right about this. The opera is so well known I don’t think I have to say much about it. It’s set in ancient Egypt because it was commissioned for and premiered for the openong of the Suez Canal. It doesn’t exactly make the Egyptians look like the good guys – but that’s also true of the Ethiopians – the only really good guys are Aida herself and Radames, both of whom are torn by conflicting loyalties. Amneris is pretty sneaky – but she is torn also. The opera is famous for the Triumphal March and for all the animals on stage (sometimes including elephants.) With these broadcasts, one can go on line and see some still photos from the production – sometimes just one or two, sometimes more. This one had 20. But if you were to look at them, if you tried to figure out the relarionships from what they looked like, you’d be fooled. The casting is the most color-blind I think I have ever seen. It warms my heart.
Cartoon –
Short Takes –
International Campaign for Tibet – Chinese woman’s racist WeChat post calls for Tibetans in Lhasa to be “wiped out”
Quote – Tibet is one of the clearest cases of institutional racism in the world today. Chinese authorities have spread racist narratives about Tibetans. A Chinese state media report on Tibet in 2008 asserted that prior to its “liberation” (meaning Tibet’s conquest by Chinese armies), “Tibet remained a society of feudal serfdom under a theocracy, one even darker and more backward than medieval Europe.” A Chinese state media report also claimed in 2021 that Chinese rule has taken Tibet “from a society under feudal serfdom to socialism, from poverty and backwardness to civility and progress.” Click through for article. Nothing is ever black and white – and that includes racidm, or tribalism. It must once have had some survivak vakue, since it’s apparently hard wired – at least in some of us. If only there were an easy answer.
Wonkette – We Wish We Were Half As Fierce As This Tennessee Mom Throwing Out The Homophobic Christian Trash
Quote – Those [six examples given] are just the local news stories our pal JoeMyGod has aggregated about (white heterosexual) conservative Christian leaders abusing children in the past week. It’s kind of a thing he does, aggregaing those stories. And the numbers are staggering. And [censored] MAGA trash wants to lead a Nazi-style campaign against drag queens and trans kids and public school teachers who tell those kids it’s OK and that they’re not going to hell for who they are? Want to call drag queens and loving teachers “groomers”? Go eat a sidewalk. Click through for story and video. I put this here because it so perfectly expresses what I feel (and you probably do also) about Christofascism and those who peddle it. And it has CC. If you cannot see Twitter videos, cuts from it are on YouTube here and here, but not the complete version.
Yes, humor has pretty much taken over today here also.
Glenn Kirschner – DOJ has many to chose from, but which crime will be the first on which Trump is indicted? [It would truly be ironic if Trump** were to go down in history as a catalyst for – I’ll uuse Glenn’s word – paradigm reform.)
Shirley Serban – The Cat Butts Song!
Puppet Regime – What Putin Loves About Fall
John Fugelsang – America’s Next President, Ron DeSantis
Mrs. Betty Bowers – “The Biggest Hypocrite in Congress” Award
Beau – Let’s talk about Trump, O’Dea, and Colorado….
Glenn Kirschner – J6 committee subpoenas Trump, and he responds with a letter that is . . . sharply self-incriminating
Meidas Touch – BREAKING: New York AG Files EMERGENCY MOTION to STOP Trump’s Continuing FRAUD (It won’t be breaking any more when you see this – but so much else was happening, it may have slipped under the radar. BTW, Meidas Touch is putting up a lot, but it’s getting very difficult to find anything under 10 minutes, let alone under 5 minutes.)
The Lincoln Project – What They Believe
Mothers Against Greg Abbott – No Choice
Parody Project – RUBLES WORTH NOTHIN’ – a Parody of Money for Nothing
Beau – Let’s talk about Pirates, Emperors, Russians, and Ukrainians….
Experts in autocracies have pointed out that it is, unfortunately, easy to slip into normalizing the tyrant, hence it is important to hang on to outrage. These incidents which seem to call for the efforts of the Greek Furies (Erinyes) to come and deal with them will, I hope, help with that. As a reminder, though no one really knows how many there were supposed to be, the three names we have are Alecto, Megaera, and Tisiphone. These roughly translate as “unceasing,” “grudging,” and “vengeful destruction.”
This is the culture article I had hoped to do last week, but it’s really timeless. I’d like to start with a personal story. Back in the oughts, when I was working at AAA, and our cubicles had low walls so we could see and possibly talk to people across to us, one day the woman across from mee said something, I forget exactly what, but with which I heartily agreed. I had seen a joke that morning which put me in mind of a particular phrase and I responded “For shizzle!” She was startled and said, “I didn’t even think you would know who Diddy was.” I said, “Well, yeah, I listen to classical music pretty well all the time, but that doesn’t mean I have to be ignorant.” And she replied that most people don’t think that way. And that little conversation was what led to our becoming BFFs. And I have learned so much and gotten so much joy from our friendship, and I think she has too, that I am so grateful to have, and so determined to continue having, an open mind.
However, I’m afraid she was right – most people don’t think that way. I can’t forget all the heads that exploded when Mr. Robert Zimmerman received the Nobel for Literature one year. Or that when the musical “Of Thee I Sing” received a Pulitzer and every creative talent who worked on it received the award except George Gershwin – that was not in my lifetime, but it’s such a well-known event, and so ironic, it sticks with me. And then, there’s “The Lexicon of Musical Invective,” a collection of quotes from history in which older composers, and some critics, verbally destroyed younger composers who turned out to be as great as or greater than their critics. You wouldn’t believe, for instance, the trash talk about Beethoven.
So when I saw this article about how one creative activity can spill over into, and even foster, a different creative activity that is unexpected, I wanted to share it. You don’t need to agree with me or the author – you don’t even need to read it – but it’s natural for me to want to share something – a type of openness – which has given so much to me.
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Kanye may not like books, but hip-hop fosters a love of literature
Kanye West provoked criticism recently when he compared reading to eating Brussels sprouts. Gotham via Getty Images
Those questions took on more importance in light of the fact that Ye recently launched Donda Academy, a private educational venture named after his late mother, Donda West, who was herself an English professor.
As a rap artist, author and academic, I would never argue that reading lots of books is the only path to gaining knowledge or showing intelligence.
Even as a former high school literature teacher, I never believed the only way – or even the primary way – for people to demonstrate intellect was through reading books. I think that performing a freestyle – that is to say, writing and reciting seemingly spontaneous rap lyrics on the spot – requires levels of intelligence that are often overlooked or racistly cast off as “natural talent” that don’t require studying or practice. For instance, the mind-blowing10-minute freestyle that rapper Black Thought performed live on New York radio station Hot 97 in 2017 is a master-class demonstration of brilliance that is a result of years of study and practice.
Black Thought performs a 10-minute freestyle on New York radio station Hot 97 in 2017.
In some ways, you might say Kanye West and I are on the same page. Where I disagree with Ye, however, is in his total dismissal of reading books, which he likens to “eating Brussels sprouts.” Rap music is a lot of things, but it includes quite a bit of reverence for literature.
A direct rap response to Kanye West’s dismissive remarks about not reading books, 10 years in advance: “A.R.T. [The Motto],” by A.D. Carson.
Kanye as ‘Gatsby’
Books have a high place in hip-hop. As I’ve pointed out in the various book chapters that I’ve authored on different aspects of rap music – and in the classes that I teach – a wealth of lyrics that contain direct and indirect references to a rich array of literary works. These works span multiple millennia and originate from across the globe.
And long before the book-hating controversy, I once referred to Ye as potentially being hip-hop’s Jay Gatsby, a reference to the central character of F. Scott Fitzgerald’s 1925 novel “The Great Gatsby,” because of the striking parallels that I saw between their lives. The novel contains teachable comparisons to “Graduation” in its use of the flashing-lights metaphor for hope and desire for wealth and class.
While Kanye West professes a disdain for books, the same cannot be said of many of his predecessors and contemporaries.
For instance, in 1996, Tupac Shakur released his 1996 album “The Don Killuminati: The 7 Day Theory” under the alias Makaveli – a variation of the name of author Niccolò Machiavelli. Machiavelli’s 16th-century works “The Prince” and “Discourses on Livy” could offer interesting insights into the album and the creative process that Tupac undertook during the final period of his life. For example, Machiavelli famously details his observations on obtaining and keeping political power in “The Prince.” Similarly, Tupac ends his album by talking about his own ascendancy of sorts, shouting out “soldiers with military minds” and detailing foretold rules of war.
What follows is a brief overview of other notable instances in which rap artists refer – either directly or indirectly – to influential literary works written by authors from around the world and throughout the ages.
Black Star’s 1998 ‘Thieves in the Night’
This song name-drops and quotes Toni Morrison’s “The Bluest Eye.” The hook of the song borrows and revises the quote from the novel:
“… for we were not strong, only aggressive; we were not free, merely licensed; we were not compassionate, we were polite; not good, but well behaved. We courted death in order to call ourselves brave, and hid like thieves from life.”
Noname’s 2021 single ‘Rainforest’
This song directly names the 1961 book “The Wretched of the Earth” by psychiatrist and political philosopher Frantz Fanon. It is a lyrical allusion to the ongoing effects of colonialism.
“Rainforest” by Noname.
KXNG Crooked and Joell Ortiz’s 2022 song ‘Heat Wave’
Crooked makes a passing reference in this song to Plato’s philosophical text “Symposium,” in which characters, including the philosopher Socrates, compete performing improvised speeches. Plato isn’t exactly writing about rap battles, but there are similarities.
“Heat Wave” by KXNG Crooked and Joell Ortiz.
Kendrick Lamar’s 2015 album ‘To Pimp a Butterfly’
There are interesting parallels to Ralph Ellison’s “Invisible Man” throughout the album. The insistent reference to “yams” on the song “King Kunta” evokes the scene from the 1952 novel in which the narrator encounters a vendor selling yams, which remind him of home, so he eats them until they make him sick.
“King Kunta” by Kendrick Lamar.
The Roots’ 2004 album ‘The Tipping Point’
This album borrows its name from a 2000 Malcolm Gladwell book. Gladwell describes a tipping point as “the moment of critical mass, the threshold, the boiling point.” The album cover features a photo of a young Malcolm X, presumably at a tipping point of sorts, before he becomes a world-famous Muslim minister and eventually co-authors the influential 1965 “The Autobiography of Malcolm X as told to Alex Haley.”
“The Tipping Point” by The Roots.
Common’s 2000 album ‘Like Water for Chocolate’
‘Assata: An Autobiography,’ by Assata Shakur. Biblio
This album takes its name from the 1989 novel by Mexican author Laura Esquivel. The book uses magical realism to convey the emotions of the main character, Tita, to the people who eat the food she makes while being a caretaker for her mother, which prevents her from fulfilling her true desires.
The album also features a song called “A Song for Assata” that features audio from an interview Common did with exiled Black freedom fighter Assata Shakur, author of the 1989 book “Assata: An Autobiography.”
Dead prez’s 2000 album ‘Let’s Get Free’
This album features many literary illusions and influences. Notably, the lyrics of the song “We Want Freedom” begin with the words, “I Ching,” which is the name of an ancient Chinese text. The group’s logo comprises a symbol, hexagram 46, used in the text that represents the word “army.” Group member stic.man says the symbol is meant to represent “forward motion, progress and adapting in our lives.”
“We Want Freedom” by dead prez.
Rapsody’s 2019 album ‘Eve’
All the titles of the songs on this album are the names of noteworthy women. “Eve” is the first woman named in a major work of literature – the Bible – and several of the other women mentioned are authors, including “Oprah,” “Myrlie,” “Michelle” and “Maya.” The song named for Maya Angelou focuses on themes in Angelou’s work and also quotes from her writing.
“Maya” by Rapsody.
Perhaps Kanye West’s recent remarks about reading will inspire some thoughtful conversation about how American society views reading and determines intelligence. If they do, the archives of hip-hop – whether in book form or music – offer an abundance of ways to take those conversations to greater depths.
============================================================== Alecto, Megaera, and Tisiphone, we don’t all need to be alike – in fact, we shouldn’t. But paying attention – and respect – to things that others care about, and the roles those things play in their lives, can open us up to a world of wonder we didn’t know existed. Help us to do that, in ways that work for us, as best we can.
Yesterday, the radio opera – operetta, actually – was “The Merry Widow” sung in German (Die Lustige Witwe”), but with some dialogue in Chinese (a good decision, I think. Neither language is easy for someone not born to them to speak, and with a part-European and part-Chinese cast, at least neither wil be burchered. I also caught one line in French – a quote from “Carmen.” Offenbach’s CanCan was also interpolated appropriately). Back in the day there was hardly anyone who was not at least vaguely familiar with “The Merry Widow Waltz” and “Vilia,” but that may bave been a holdover from the movie with Maurice Chevalier and Jeanette MacDonald. Also, in my day, there was a type of lingerie known as a “Merry Widow” – it comprised a bra with an attached mini-corset (it went maybe halfway down the hip) and inded in elastic with clasp garters. And then along came pantyhose, and that was the end of that. But I digress. Viennese operetta has fairly convoluted plots and so much additional hijinks that it’s really not possible tp try tu summarize them, and this one was the granddaddy of them all. It also has the distinction (?) of a serial killer having been so obsessed with it, and particularly the make lead, that he used that character’s name as an alias, which is how he was eventually caught. But I digress again.
Cartoon –
Short Takes –
truthout – Trump Believed He Could Sue Congress to Stop Congressional Impeachments
Quote – Trump’s commentary on his first impeachment trial — which was centered around his attempt in 2019 to coerce Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to find political dirt on now-President Joe Biden in exchange for military assistance from the U.S. — demonstrates his lack of knowledge on the process. “I’ll just sue Congress. They can’t do this to me,” Trump said at the time, according to Haberman’s book. Click through for article, whicj pretty much explains the situation – but doesn’t answer such questions as, if you were President, or another federal official, and you wanted to sue Congress, whould you do it as the President – which would be one branch of government suing another branch – who would be your attorney? But if you filed as an individual – a citizen – how would that do anything to stop an impeachment? It makes my head spin. Of course he wssn’t knowledgeable enough to even ask such questions
The Hechinger Report – How Moms for Liberty wants to reshape education this school year and beyond
Quote – Instead, speakers talked about conspiracy theories surrounding social emotional learning, a framework that includes teaching students how to empathize with others and use mental health coping skills. They talked about gender and sexuality, and they denounced the decisions some schools have made to refer to students by their preferred pronouns. The conference also focused on restorative justice, a concept that attempts to disrupt the school-to-prison pipeline through alternative discipline methods. Ryan Petty, whose daughter was murdered in the mass shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in 2018, led a session that blamed the gunman’s ability to carry out the killing, in part, on the restorative justice practices in his daughter’s school district. Click through for details. Public schools – actually open to and intend for all of the public – being a function of government, are intended to educate students into citizens. As such, they should teach no opinions, no beliefs, just facts and skills, including how government works, and how it doesn’t work. If you want your child taught opinions and belief, teach him or her at home, or enroll him or her in a private school. That’s not the public school’s job.
