Thursday, July 26, 2007

You Cant Tell Me Nothing!

So, this morning I'm checking out nahright.com, to stay in tune with the "Hip-Hop Culture", and there is an article about Francois Girbaud. Apparently, Monsieur Girbaud, owner of a popular clothing brand in some "hoods" (made famous by Cash Money Records), doesn't like the direction that his clothing company was moving in or its Hip-Hop following. This made me think back to the other Caucasian businessmen that didn't appreciate the African American business they were receiving. I thought of Tommy Hilfiger, the Swartz family at Timberland (even though they change their mind after the quarterly reports came in), Cristal, and others. See, normally, I would be angered by Monsieur Girbaud, but I am not. I am more angered by the "Hip-Hop" people that get offended by these businesses. What made these "ghetto youths" think that these brands were marketed to them? Has Cristal ever put an advertisement in the Source, XXL, or the Vibe? Does Tommy Hilfiger sell his wears in Jimmy Jazz or V.I.M.? How many of you Negroes have ever picked up the Robb Report? Understand, luxury brands are marketed to those living luxurious lives, not those trying to be hood rich! People like Jay-Z and Diddy, who vacation in Nice, Saint-Tropez, Monaco, and the rest of the Côte d'Azur (if you don't know where it is, you're not "ballin"), have been working hard to live their luxurious lives. You on the other hand, have been making payments on a Lexus IS or ES, vacationing on Virginia Beach, wearing Red Monkeys and Evisus. These Caucasian businessmen (unlike their Asian counterparts who raise the price in America, because they know niggas are stupid), are selling their products to other Caucasian businessmen. The "Hip-Hop community" is full of fantastic dreamers, living in outer space. I'm not putting down anybody that enjoys the finer things in life; I'm putting down those that have a false sense of reality. Just because you put on a pair of Yves Saint-Laurent sunglasses or a Christian Dior belt, you're not on the same level as a Kanye West or a 50 Cent. Until you move from South Jamaica, Queens or Brownsville, Brooklyn to a mansion in Lake Tahoe or Martha's Vineyard, you're not really "ballin". It's hilarious to me, because I live in New York, between Manhattan and Long Island (famed for the Hampton's), and I see these young dudes so-called "ballin", and they're really not. These are dudes that are associated with "Hip-Hop", a misogynistic, homophobic, racist and violent culture. And it's these same dudes that are outraged when a Caucasian businessman doesn't want to be aligned with this culture. Why would anybody trying to maintain a respectable name associate with such ignorant material? I have to admit, I'm guilty of the whole "ballin" thing, and the only difference is I know my limits. I know where I go, I know what I have and I know what I do. When I say "I'm chilling at the beach on the weekend", I'm not talking about Orchid Beach or Coney Island, when I say "I've packed for the weekend", best believe the bag is an authentic Louis Vuitton, and if I say "grab a bottle", I'm not talking about cognac or vodka. I may be trapped in the poisoned mind state that the rest of "Hip-Hop culture" is trapped in, but at least, I know what's real and what's not. What makes it even sadder, is that most of these "Hip-Hop" dudes are in their thirties, maybe thirty isn't the new twenty, and maybe thirty is a little more immature.

Peace, I mean WAR!