The News Argus April 1997 Page 9
ENTERTAINMENT
Vibes, Beats a-ncC
BY VINCE WOODY
Staff Writer
Soul Assassins
DJ Muggs is one of the most
underestimated DJ’s in hip hop. He is
most famous for producing the melodic,
eerie, yet abrasive beats that are
responsible for making Cypress Hill
famous. For this outing he has followed
in the footsteps of Marley Marl, Dr. Dre,
and Erick Sermon by producing a
compilation album of current hip hop
heads.
Soul Assassins is the greatest
representation of what hip hop was and
should be, that I have seen in some time.
Tight beats and creative lyrics are the
essence of what hip hop is and what
makes this CD a must have. However
each artist seems to add their own
original flavor to a Muggs’ beat.
The only blotch on the CD are songs
by The Infamous Mobb, Mobb Deep, and
LA the Darkman. It’s not that the lyrics
have flaws, its just that we’ve heard it,
over and over and over again. Crime and
violence themes have been over worked
in hip hop. Maybe if these artists would
read a book or look at the world outside
of the projects they would have been
entertaining. There isn’t anything wrong
with projects but there is more to the
world than projects. For the record,
“keeping it real” is not being loyal to
crime and negativity in your lyrics, its
being loyal to your people.
“John 3:16,” written by Wycleff of
the Refugee Camp, takes an interesting
look at the biblical verse. “John 3:16” is
the CD’s best and it probably can’t can’t
get much better.
Goodie Mobb, represented the South
to the fullest with “Decisions,
Decisions.” The strength of these lyrics
even earned C-LO, (the rapper with the
southern fried accent), a hip hop
quotable. The thing you have to love
most about Goodie Mobb is they keep it
real. There’s nothing wrong with being
country and Goodie Mobb is proof.
“Decisions, Decisions” proves to the
listeners that ATL has lyrics too,
regardless of where they originate from.
Other standouts include: Dr. Dre and
B -Real’s “PuR)et Master”, KRS - One’s
“Move Ahead”, and RZA and GZA’s
“Third World” which elevates the WU
Tang saga to another level.
Over all, this CD’s one of the most
solid compilations I’ve heard in a long
time. I definitely underestimated DJ
Muggs’ ability to bring together a tight
project
The Apple Tree Tour: A Review
BY VINCE WOODY AND TONYA SHEFHELD
Staff Writers
The “Apple Tree Tour” made a stop
on Winston - Salem State University’s
campus earlier this month. It was a stop
well appreciated by WSSU faculty,
students and residents of the Winston -
Salem community. The tour, featuring
Erykah Badu, brought jazz, spice and
life to an audience who was accustomed
to hearing samples, formula raps, and
remixes.
Badu amd her band would kept the
crowd on their feet with the funky old
school songs or samples they used in a
song. The band got the flow going when
they began pumping the sounds of
Herbie Hancock’s, “Watermelon Man.”
Then after three to five minutes into the
song, Badu appeared on stage and got the
concert jumping. From the intro of
Heatwave’s “Boogie Nights” to her
lastest single “Next Lifetime” the
audience gave and received much love
from Badu.
The relaxed atmosphere of Badu’s
show was a breath of fresh air from
hardcore or graphic shows. She sung
with a spirit and creativity that many
R&B divas lack in this day and times.
She raised her voice to levels that may
have even given Patti Labelle and
Jennifer Holiday a run for their money.
She is a mixture of the best parts of many
singers of the past reincarnated in the
present. These skills were presented in
her rendition of Chaka Kahn’s “Stay,”
the audience sang along with her.
According to an interview on
BET’s, Planet Groove, Badu’s
motherland essence is her being herself.
Her afrocentirc clothing and spiritually
inspired subject matter in songs like “On
and On” and “Apple Tree." She seems to
be heavily in touch with her roots, where
she came from, and where she is going.
She also gave the audience
improvisations, and selections from her
CD Baduizm such as “Certainly,”
“Appletree,” “Rimshot,” and “Whatcha
Gonna Do.”
Accompanied only by bass and
keyboard players, a drummer and three
background singers, it seemed as though
she had and orchestra. The sound was
pure and crisp, unlike many concerts
where the sound is muffled or certain
instruments are up lo loud.
For years we have looked for
originality in R & B concerts, “The
Apple Tree Tour” restored our faith in
originality. Everything from the incense
burning on stage to the motherland
aurora made her performance well worth
the price of admission.
Conversly, the performance of
comedian, D.S., who told tired jokes
which degraded blacks and a subpar
performance by Outkast, added no flair
to the concert. A tip to Outkast, find a
better sound man. A tip to the comedian
D.S., find jokes that don’t make black
people look so ignorant.
Hovie Reviews
BY DANIELLE PROPHETE AND SHARONDA WILCOX
Staff Writers
B.A.P.S.
B.A.P.S., Black American Princesses, is a basic
rags to riches story, directed by Robert Townsend. Halle
Berry (Nisi) and Natalie Desselle (Mickey) are two girls
form Decatur, Ga., who sling hash in a local greasy
spoon. They both fantasize about a better life. Nisi
wants to be a hairdresser and Mickey wants to own her
own restaurant.
WTien they leam about a Heavy D audition in Los
Angeles, Calif., Nisi persuades Mickey to take their life
savings and fly to L.A. for the audition. After bombing
at the audition they are approached by a chauffeur (Luigi
Amodeo) who claims his boss is also making a music
video and he thinks they would be perfect for the job.
He would also pay them $10,000. (Show Them The
Money!) They soon find out the real reason they were
brought to the estate.
B.A.P.S. is so hilarious that it is definitely worth
seeing. Halle Berry enters into a whole different
atmosphere with this character and shows her ability to
transform from one char^ter to another. This is the type
of movie that the whole family should go out and see
together and laugh together!
Love Jones
“Lovejones," is a wonderful display of the realities
of a relationship that involves two ambitious African-
Americans was really a breath of fresh air when
compared to the way young African -Americans and
relationships are usually stereotyped in movies.
Darius Lovehall (Lorenz Tate) and Nina Mosley
(Nia Long) meet at “The Sanctuary,” a popular nightspot
where Darius and his friends hang out faithfully and
where poetry is the thing. Darius who is intrigued by
Nina, dedicates and recites a poem for her titled,
“Brother to the Night” (A Blues for Nina), but she is a
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little embarrassed; but intrigued by his affection.
Eventually after much determination and persistence
Darius finally gains Nina’s attention and eventually this
infatuation develops into a relationship.
The one thing that stands out about this movie is that
“it’s real”, the characters, the situations, the talks that the
men and women have about sex and relationships is what
makes this movie interesting.
Although the movie seems to leave you wondering
what happened with Darius and Nina’s relationship, the
story was really easy to follow. Not only did it provide a
good showing of talent from an all African-American
cast, but it was good enough for me to go and see it
again.
Other talents to look for in this movie are Isaiah
Washington (Savon), Bill Bellamy (Hollywood),
Bernadette Clark (Sheila), Leonard Roberts (Eddie) and
Lisa Nicole Carson (Josie).
I definitely got a “Lovejones” from this movie and
, the soundtrack is worth checking out too!
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