Essay 198

More Monday Night MultiCultClassics Minutes…

• Most wouldn’t label Eminem a wannabe. But some folks are claiming the new iPod spot featuring the rapper is a rip-off of a 2002 Lugz commercial. Or maybe hip-hop has become a cliché in the ad business.

• What’s your rap IQ? Potential jurors are being quizzed for the upcoming Murder Inc. money-laundering trial. Lawyers are testing people’s knowledge on hip-hop culture, seeking to determine if folks can remain fair and impartial. Not sure if candidates must also record a demo track.

• Dude, where’s my Lamborghini? Safe and sound, if you’re Cam’ron. The Harlem rapper escaped a carjacking in Washington, D.C., but not before having a bullet rip into both arms. For hip-hop artists, confronting a carjacker is the quickest route to jacking up album sales.

• Historically Black Colleges and Universities across the nation are presenting students with special programs — diet programs, that is. The country’s obesity epidemic is hitting minorities hard, so institutions of higher learning are seeking to lower the weight of its average student body. Is it any surprise that Mickey D’s is a strong supporter of HBCUs?

• “I think we as Black people spend way too much time worrying about what White people think of us. I don’t give a fuck about what White people think,” said Aaron McGruder, creator of the comic strip and new Cartoon Network show, The Boondocks. McGruder spoke with Allison Samuels in the October 31, 2005 issue of Newsweek. Check it out.