FNV Special Editorial:
DO G's REALLY MAKE THE WORLD GO ROUND?
March 31 1997

The other day myself, and a few other industry kids including Epic Records promotion rep Will Strickland, KMEL Radio mix co-ordinator Glen Aure and Crystal..President of Street Wize promotions to name a few were chilling at the Water Front Restaurant in San Francisco engaged in a deep discussion regarding the current state of hip hop... We were speaking upon all the negative publicity surrounding hip hop as a result of Biggie's death and we were trying to figure out how to flip the script.. Will noted that the first thing the hip hop community needs to do is get rid of some of these gangsta talk show hosts.. We thought about it.. and agreed that Will had a point.. We gotta step it up and embark on a mission similar to the one taken by C. Delores Tucker.

After all, a lot of the violence in my 'hood' is the result of all these kids watching Geraldo.. He's the king pin.. He's the Don of the gangsta talk show hosts.. As I sat there thinking.. I recalled all the times that Geraldo, a well known articulate and respected journalist had resorted to violence or issued a threat of violence to solve his problems.. I recalled him getting into it with the Ku Klux Klan during one show.. If memory serves me correctly he got his nose busted up.. and he walked around showcasing his injury like it was a medal of honor.. . He put it down and let folks know if you step to Geraldo in the wrong way.. he's down to squab with you.. After all Geraldo don't play that.. Take a step back and think about it.. doesn't it seem like every show this respected journalist talks about how he's ready to put a foot up some one's ass... He's always talking about how he's ready to confront OJ.. And I hate to say it there's been numerous shows in which Geraldo's guests were on the verge of mixing it up.. So we gotta get him off the air.. Geraldo Rivera..The Big Don of The Gangsta Talk Show host has influenced a whole generation of kids to be violent..

Geraldo unfortunately is not alone... He's got a female counterpart.. Jenny Jones. She's the Queen Bee.. She's the gangsteress of talk show hosts. Already Ms Jones has got one death under her belt. Remember she was the one who help set the stage in which a controversial situation would explode.. She took some kid who was homophobic and put him on the same show with a gay admirer.. The result was the gay admirer being killed by this homophobe after the show.. Myself, Will and the rest of the crew that was chilling at the Water Front recalled how after that incident there seemed to be an increase in the violence and hate crimes directed at gay people.. We are almost certain that this was the result of The Jenny Jones Show..

Now underneath all that we have some other major gangsta talk show hosts..including former Queen Bee.. Ms Ricky Lake, Richard Bay, Montel, Jerry Springer and a few others who I can't name.. These folks are all guilty of showcasing violence to the easily influenced minds of America as the best way to resolve conflict.. They're basically tell you to act ignorant and resort to violence on national TV... Look I know for a fact that all these 'gangsta' rappers like 2Pac and Notorious BIG used to watch these talk shows all the time.. . All of them were sweet church going kids who grew up adhering to the concept of peace and harmony. It wasn't until they started seeing these violent outburst on all these talk shows that they realized that a civil discussion was not the correct way to handle your problems.. When you got a difference of opinion you get buckwild and start handin' out beat downs.. If you do a really good job.. you may wind up on the Jenny Jones or the Geraldo Show as a guest.. After all they need explosive volatile people to help set things off...If you're really violent and enjoy mixing it up.. You might even get your own talk show..

Yesterday I left a couple of messages on WC's answering machine..because I wanted to check something out.. I'm almost sure that when he, Ice Cube and Mack 10 of The Westside Connection got together and wrote the song 'Gangsta's Make The World Go Round' they were inspired by all these gangsta talk shows.. I know Cube to be a brilliant brother so I'm sure he drew the same conclusions as we did while chillin' at the Water Front.. You see we do indeed know that Gangstas do indeed make the world go round.. That's why after we get rid of these gangsta talk shows we're gonna start coming down on all these gangsta actors and actresses..

First on the list is Marlon Brando.. The God Father.. The original Don of the Corleone Crime Family.. This fool won an academy award for being a straight up gangsta.. Him and his gangsta side kick Al Pacino got all these kids to run around wearing all these expensive Italian gear and got all these urban kids to adapt gangsta names like Nas Escabar and Wu-Gambinos.. Let's look at the facts.. a few years ago HBO ran a whole special where they showed all three Godfather movies.. soon afterwards.. all these kids began running around rappin' with Italian gangsta names.. They all tried to imitate Marlon and Al.. The hell with these gangsta actors.. They're ruining America.. There are a lot of folks like Vanilla Ice who accuse Suge Knight of strong arming people.. If this is true.. and mind you I haven't spoken to Suge personally.. I am willing to bet my bottom dollar that if he did indeed do some dirt it was only after watching how gangsta actors like Marlon Brando got busy in these gangsta movies like the God Father or Good Fellas or Leaving Las Vegas..

Lets talk about some other gangsta rappers.. We can start with Mr. Brad Jordan aka as Scarface and a member of the Geto Boys.. Now I've met Mr. Jordan on a couple of occasions.. I know for a fact that he did not take his name because he bears scar on his face.. He has no scars.. I'm telling you he became Scarface after watching Al Pacino get busy in Scarface.. All of Mr. Jordans gangsta lyrics are the result of him watching this movie... I can just feel it in my bones.. There's another so called gangsta rapper who bares the name Terminator X.. who is with the radical rap group Public Enemy. Now I may be wrong..but I almost sure Norman Rogers adapted his name after watching another gangsta actor.. Arnold Swartznegger.. In the movie Terminator doesn't Arnold knock off a couple of cops? If not in that movie I'm sure there are others in which he does... Trust me folks Arnold, Van Demme, Steven Segal and Sylvester Stallone are all gangsta actors who's gratuitous violent behavior have laid down the building blocks for today's 'gangsta' rap music. Look at this way, Arnold and Sylvester get paid millions of bucks each flick by kicking dat ass, knockin' fools out and occasionally killing a soul or two.. They've set a perfect example by laying out a formula for today's gangsta rappers on what they need to do to get paid...

Hey let's be real about things and give credit where credit is due.. long before you had all these gangsta rappers shooting videos of themselves in jail.. you had gangsta actor/ singer Elvis Presly getting loose.. Did you ever see the movie Jail House Rock? Elvis started all this glamorizing of prisons.. Him, Clint Eastwood and Steve Mc Queen... Of course the real godfather of all this gangsterism is one of America's favorite sons.. James Dean.. Long before 2Pac came along acting ill.. you had James Dean being the rebel without a cause...

And lets not talk about the drive bys.. Before I go jamming up these gangsta rappers or even today's gang bangers.. I gotta give major props to all those old black and white gangsta films from the 50s and 40s.. You remember all the old Al Capone movies.. Them fools was doing drive bys on the regular.. I was talking with some LA gang members the other day and they told me Al Capone used to run a school back in the days that specifically showed inner city kids how to get down while driving a car..

Oh yeah, kinda related to the subject are gangsta actresses... Before you get mad a rappers like Lil Kim and Foxy Brown for dressing in a revealing manner.. remember they got their cues from gangsta actresses like Cher and Farah Fawcett to name a few.. Didn't Cher get on some awards show a few years ago wearing see through pants that revealed a big ole tattoo on her butt ? Heck if she can do it and get paid.. Why can't Lil Kim be depicted squatting in a poster wearing a leopard skin g string? And remember long before Foxy Brown started highlighting her boobs.. Farah Fawcett was getting down and letting things jingle in the hit show Charlie Angels.. If you can have a cop running around getting paid for showing cleavage why can't Foxy Brown? And don't talk to me about these female gangsta rappers having bad attitudes and being vulgar in their music...Not when we have gangsta actresses like Rosanne Arnold clocking duckets for getting ill...

We decided to take a close look at all the gangstas around us... We have gangsta talk show host, gangsta actors and actresses and we also have gangsta Presidents who have really made this world go round.. Remember a couple of years ago when we had a conflict in the Persian Gulf....wasn't it President Bush who talked so eloquently about us going over there to kick some ass.. Look if the President says its alright to go kick some ass why can't todays rappers?.. Bush was a straight up G.. He was all about making people bow down.. especially when we the US came to their town.. Lets look at this carefully.. the whole Westside thing came from our former Presidents... Like Franklin D Roosevelt.. Where is the US located? In the West..right? What country goes around and checks all the other countries for not bowing down to our way of thinking? What country is the defender of 'Western' civilization? That's right you got it...the US of A.. Yo! long before Ice Cube threw up his first W.. US Presidents like FDR were out yelling 'Westside for life..'

The whole East/ West Coast war ain't nothing new.. Heck in the 40s during World War II there was an East/West Coast War.. I hate to say it but the West side made the East really bow down when we dropped that atomic bomb on Hiroshima.. We had to let fools know.. . when you come to our town bow down or we'll be bring the ruckus.. Didn't the US beat down a whole bunch of Japanese and send then to internment camps during that whole East/West World War II.. Think about it kid... Ice Cube didn't make all this west side stuff up.. He read his history books.. Props to him for learning his lessons... I'm certain that's why the brother did that song 'Gangstas Make The World Go Round..'. He clearly understood the significant role violence plays in our day to day lives..

Look, here's the point I'm making... Gangterism is as American as apple pie.. We as a country have long held up, paid and honored the rebels and criminal elements within our mists.. Remember the fascination we had with mafia leader John Gotti.. There have been 3 made for tv specials about this crime boss... America loves its crooks... It has long made heroes out of those who do wrong.. Notoriety is the name of the game.. In other words violence was here and very much a part of pop culture long before 'gangsta rap'.

We have long used violence as a means to solve our problems... This attitude has originated from the very top with our Presidents who have no problem using 'force' to defend the Westside... and has trickled down to our kiddie shows. If you don't believe me just sit down and watch the Power Rangers.. Are those kids sitting there talking about conflict resolution or are they out there kickin' ass? When I was coming up.. I used to check out Superman, Batman, The Green Hornet and Ultraman..Heck even Bugs Bunny has been known to put a foot off in an ass or two.. All them kids used to make their loot by knocking fools off... Superman showed me I could even take a couple of bullets and still get in dat ass... So you get the point...

In conclusion, me my boy Will Strickland, Glen Aure and our girl Crystal have decided to get down with this whole crusade to get rid of all this gangsterism.. While C Delores Tucker focuses on the rappers we'll be locking horns with gangsta talk show hosts, gangsta actors and actresses and of course these gangsta presidents... Wish us luck cause we have serious battle on our hand....

Let Us Know What You Think

Written by
Davey D
c 1997

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