There's no cool way to say it so we're just going to say it. This is our final post on theblagg in its current form. A huge thank YOU to everyone who read the posts over the years and was infuriated or enthralled or enticed or in distress so much that they couldn't leave a comment. Ha! Thank you for reading right now. We're going to leave you with fratpack's What Do They Know - which gives Zaki Ibrahim's The Kids Are Talking a fratpackular twist - because we want you to download the frwednesday mixtape HERE if you haven't already and because we love you.
I would salivate over this biography (written with D Michael Cheers) when it still sat on my brother's desk, begging me to read it. My brother was still busy with it so I couldn't grab it from him. It's called Readers Courtesy...or something. I think he'd received Still Grazing: The Musical Journey Of Hugh Masekela from a ladyfriend. I can't quite remember. What I do remember is that he ran through these pages like Dude and I used to run through 2 litre Coca-Cola bottles back when we still drank it. See, Mikko? I did quit the stuff.
Ok, back to Ntate Hugh. Back in those days, my brother wasn't much of a reader. He had a bedroom recording studio where all his friends could stink up his room, what did he need to read for? I'm only teasing. Once he allowed me to get his hands on his copy, the book and I were inseparable. Something in me shifted. I was already a massive fan of the jazz icon and I'd still pay good money to watch him live, any day.
But, you know how they say you should never meet your idols? This was kind of like that, but in a good way. It's like meeting your idol, finding out he's a fcuk-up but loving him anyway because he was able to find a place to be ok with who he is "when he's alone, naked and in the dark" (as a friend once said) and still reveal all of that work-in-progress-ness to us.
For someone who is so revered, I don't see how that's ever easy. We're not talking about El Debarge being honest about his drug use here. We're talking about a man who received a birthday card from an incarcerated Nelson Mandela. Surely, he didn't owe the readers an explanation. But he showed us his building blocks anyway. So if you've ever wondered just how one survives exile, how volatile Mirriam Makeba really was and who Hugh Masekela is, then pick this book up.
Also, last month, the Encounters Film Festival screened ALEKESAM, a documentary about the relationship between Hugh Masekela and his son, Sal, as the latter embarks on a musical journey of his own. Try to see it wherever you can. Here's the trailer:
Dude and I get to travel two hours one way or the other quite often and sometimes, there isn't really much to take with on the trips but you can't exactly pitch up to the airport empty handed. What if it gets cold on the plane - you know how some people love their aircon on. So we thought, this Benny Gold Canvas Duffel Bag would really be ill to have for these trips and just nje because it's phly.
Grey liner and inside pockets. Check.
Padded strap that locks everything in all neatly? Check.
Makes you want to get into a long distance relationship just to own this duffel bag, huh? No? Ok. We heart Benny Gold.
theblagg is about as mixed as a Fouro. That’s word to all you kidults who grew up making six-o and stuff. Anyway, both The Ordinary Girl and Dude’s parents are black people, who although speak different languages, have always been people of the South. And that’s word to Dali Tambo and his pillows. But that’s as far as our roots go. Some people, like Lila Anton, have a far more interesting ethnic make-up. This striking individual’s mom is black, her dad is white – both are American but settled in Japan in the 70s. She was born in Japan and Japanese is her first language aaaaaaand she’s studied in Ghana and Palestine. Cool, right? Well, she thinks so. That’s why she made a documentary about it. It’s called A Raizin In The Sun and sounds like a lot of fun. Snippets of Lila’s life have already been put on the ‘net and this is just one of them:
As you may or may not know, Dude was a part of the STR.CRD blog challenge a while back and while in it, he got to shoot some pretty dope material. Now the competition is over and I know that some of you may not have been able to attend the Joburg showcase or just may not have seen this footage. Shot on theblaggcam and edited by Dude, this is a quick gonzo-like interview he did with Ofentse’s friend in the head, Va$htie and after that video, a dope performance by Cape Town’s own, Ill Skillz.
When The Ordinary Girl still had an internet friendly J-O 9and when Solange still had a weave), she came across this, changed the format and shoved it down Dude's ears for dayyyys. No Nonhle. So I thought I might share it with you guys. The sound quality is dodgy at times but hey, she's hella cool so...try and enjoy it.
When The Roots’ fourth album, Things Fall Apart, came out, The Ordinary Girl still believed in a lot of things. My fingers lingered over YMag articles. I carried MP3 compilations, which always, always listed some or other Aesop Rock album first, from school to home and back again frequently. I sat in on the recording sessions that saw my brother’s beats become the bed for budding rappers to lie on. Really now, straight from the dome in the booth? Ha. I’m just kidding guys, don’t be mad. Aaaaaaaanyway.
Everyone came to my house. It was like a mens hostel, except these rappers weren’t quite men yet. My brother’s room is where the computer stayed and the speakers were loud (even though my screechy voice was louder). So whenever I had a moment alone with the PC - which was rare - I would sit in my brother’s room. I’d listen to this Things Fall Apart album and watch the Media Player’s colourful lazer lines sprout from the centre of the screen with every thump of Thought’s rhymes. But my favourite bit of the album wasn’t even by a member of The Roots.
It was Ursula Rucker’s Return To Innocence Lost.
Rucker has often featured on The Roots' albums but this particular piece (all damn near 12 minutes of it) had a profound effect on me and especially in how I write today. I don’t know what Rucker’s words meant or mean to you, but I do know that they made me realise the world was a much bigger place than I thought it was then. And I didn’t even have to leave my brother’s room to find this out. Tracking down some footage of this beautiful woman performing Return To Innocence Lost is incredibly difficult, so shout out to Otis Groove for making this accessible. It’s obviously not exactly what you’ll hear on Things Fall Apart, but perhaps this will prompt you to go get this album if you don’t already own it.
South Africans don’t have to worry about cold weather for a couple of months. Unless they live in Cape Town where everyday, at least for an hour, can feel like winter. The Ordinary Girl is always cold. Like always. Meet me anytime, anywhere and I’ve got a cardigan or coat on. I can’t help it. But even I wouldn’t wear these Nike Air Baked sneakers. I know they are supposed to keep you warm and all but...really? You can find them in Motion, which is suede and fur on top or the cotton and crotcheted ones or all fur everything in the normal Mids. Sigh. What do you think blaggettes?
I was lying on the bed. Hoping the sweat would run down my arms slower if my limbs lay flat. The sun in the Sunninghill suburb is relentless. It laughs in the face of the word scorcher and considers sunscreen stupid. So I was laying there, resigned to being in a furnace. The windows were wide open and so were Dude’s eyes. He was standing in the middle of the room and I was wondering if his thin frame was blocking the fresh air circulation with all his excitement. He was going on about this Kendrick something-or-other.
I remember him saying something about the West Coast, I rolled my eyes. There was another thing about him rapping about being a Christian, I was intrigued. I wanted to ask if this Kendrick-what-what was hot but onomatopaeia made me weary of voicing such things since I was beyond burning up. Since that day, I learned that his surname is Lamar. I discovered that he has a silly but sweet soft spot for Beyonce (if you know The Ordinary Girl you know why that’s significant). I understood that he appreciated The Girlfriends as much as he did the Tammy's and Keisha's whose paths are different from each other. I also unconsciously began to accept his lines, phrases and quirks as things that would become part of our lives. If I had a Rand for everytime Dude answered a question with “Fuck thut...”
It’s been years since I was harassed by the Sunninghill sun - Norhood is so much better in so many ways - but at least, in that time, I got the answer to the question I was too lazy to ask Dude. Kendrick Lamar is hot. What he looks like doesn’t matter, what he’s managed to do for music and for self esteem is something special. This is Tammy’s Song, off Section.80, which is nominated for Best Mixtape at the 2011 BET Hip Hop Awards.
The Ordinary Girl spent the weekend in Darling. My favourite thing about Rocking The Daisies? This tattoo. It just sums life up. My friend, Neo, took the picture on her Curvaceous so excuse the quality.
UPDATED: This is actually a Banksy piece. Amazing, right?
This week has proven that contrary to what Q-Tip said, it's not just record company people who are shady. Sigh.
We won't go into that right now. Instead, you can check out this old, quick XXL Magazine clip featuring Q-Tip talking about Industry Rules, the book he's writing with dream hampton:
We told you about her a while ago ( click here to refresh your memory ), and we told you that we really like her. As if that wasn't enough, Dude bumps into her in the streets of Soho and she proves to be even doper than he could imagine!....After he got over his groupie moment, he asked what was coming up and she said:
