Same Moon

It is with GREAT pleasure that I bring you all my first professional single, "Same Moon."  A lot has gone into getting this track done so I ask that you all listen and share it with everyone you know. Trust there will be more to come.

It's crazy, ya know? Sometimes I just sit here and reminisce..wondering where the years have gone. Just looking back on my life and lessons learned. Sometimes it feels like I'm not even supposed to be here right now. Like I should be dead or in jail. But I'm still here. And I'm thankful...for everything this Carolina life has shown me. I aint done yet though..let's go!

(Chorus)
Lookin back on how these years made me
Coming up in Carolina. She's forever my lady
I tell my people now that we on. In this industry
It's '91 to infinity and beyond
From the Queen City to the 9 Dime
Home of the best, I'm guessin next that the world is mine
I really hope that I aint leavin too soon.
Every night of my life, I've been admiring the same moon

(Verse 1)
See it was back in '96
Had my first kiss in kindergarten
and I've been chasing waterfalls ever since
Wrote a poem for my teacher on some "roses are red"
She called me mannish. That went over my head
I wasn't trippin. I was livin every day like the first of summer
Outside in any weather. I thought it'd last forever
Playin with my cousins and them. My mama watched us race bikes
She was hustlin then, them late nights
I never realized we were up in the hood cuz I was five.
Mama watched me like a hawk in the sky
I gotta give it up cuz I know for a woman it aint EASY tryna raise a man
I understand. I got a plan, mama. On how to make a couple grand, mama
Couple pages per day. I'm nice with the wordplay
Gotta match you in the work put in. In terms of mothers, you a perfect 10
I'll hustle til you never have to work again

(Chorus)

(Verse 2)
See it was back in '02
Middle school I was dressin old school. Little dude tryna pose cool
Those were funny days. I was goin through my chubby phase
Had my pants saggin with the struggle braids
But effervescent adolescent I was,
Though it was tough tryna impress girls around the thugs
Tryna get attention, that's when I rebelled
Skippin class to get detention, like goin to jail cell
I remember all my boys playin basketball and
I was sittin writin raps and drawin
Hated the monotony. People shoot hoops every day.
I was droppin new jewels every page.
And they used to tease him.
Every day he would say that he'd make it but they didn't believe him
I aint mad though, cuz I don't know if I believed myself
I prayed to God cuz I needed help
now

(Chorus)

(Verse 3)
See it was back in '09
I was just a college boy
The freedom sweeter than an Almond Joy
That's when I met my boy Steve
And we both figured
We had to come together in the name of something bigger
We dropped the Validation. It was the foundation.
Tru Muzzik is the movement. This is OUR nation
Realist Undergrads....now we payin rent...
Staring at the same moon...as I plan my ascent...
Realist Undergrads...now we payin rent....
Rest in Peace, Deena....

Mike Brown vs. Robin Williams

Good day, everyone. As I sat here on my bed, listening to the new Ab-Soul album, scrolling through my IG timeline, I knew I'd have to hop on here and give my two cents on this whole Mike Brown/Robin Williams death situation.

What I see on my timeline today are a lot of posts criticizing

people for mourning Williams "more" than Brown, President Obama for acknowledging Williams' death and not Brown's, Williams for "choosing" to die, etc, etc, etc. 

I promise social media gives me a headache sometimes lawd.. 

Firstly, I'd like to go on record by saying that Mike Brown's death is a tragedy. From what I've read in the news, I imagine he was a fine young man who didn't cause trouble and dreamed of making something of himself. I can only imagine the pain his family is going through right now and I hope the police officer responsible is prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law. In many ways, this is the Trayvon Martin situation all over again, only this time there's an actual police department being held accountable. While Brown's friends claim the policeman instigated the altercation by telling them to "get the f*ck onto the sidewalk," the police department claims that Brown initiated the struggle by trying to reach for the officer's gun (read about it here). Sound familiar? 

History has a funny way of repeating itself, so they say.... 

That being said, I hope that my black brothers and sisters really aren't sitting around waiting for Obama to say something about Mike Brown. Ok. Let's say today he finally acknowledges the situation, then what? Let's say he gets behind his presidential podium today and delivers some prepared remarks about how his thoughts and prayers are with Brown's family and the Ferguson community and how we have to work to prevent these sort of occurrences in the future. Then. What? I can see why some people are disheartened about Obama's silence on the issue, but I personally couldn't care less if he says something about it or not. I'm sorry, but Obama is not a sorcerer; his acknowledging Mike Brown's death will not bring him back, nor will it stop policemen from abusing their authority and shooting more black people in the future. The sad truth is, we're pretty much the only generation in America with the power to stop this sort of atrocity, but we've been pacified into believing that we're doing our part by prefacing our tweets with #RIPMikeBrown. Slacktivism runs rampant and it's a problem. 

Have yall ever heard of Leroy Powell? Probably not. He was 15 years old and gunned down in an alleyway last week after giving an eyewitness statement of a murder his friend committed. What about Jakari Pearson? He was an 8-year-old who was killed in his sleep last month by a stray bullet through his wall. Where's Powell's Twitter campaign? Where's Pearson's? Where's the demand for better witness protection and stricter gun regulations? Don't their deaths deserve just as much attention and mourning as Brown's? Don't they deserve acknowledgement from President Obama as well? Apparently not..

Cuz that's just boring, right? 

Nope, we didn't hear about their deaths because black-on-black crime doesn't benefit the media. I said long ago in a previous post that I believe the media purposely focuses on stories like Brown's because they'd love nothing more than for a riot to break out; that way they can send some bemused-looking reporter out to cover it acting as if they have no idea what sparked it in the first place.

Moving on to Robin Williams, Uncle Rob was an American treasure; his body of work spanned generations and he brought countless people joy. This is not to say that his life was "more important" than Brown's by any means...but one must understand his magnitude. I didn't cry when I heard he passed, but dammit if I didn't come close; Mrs. Doubtfire and Aladdin were both staples of my childhood. The fact that Williams apparently struggled with depression and committed suicide makes his situation that much sadder. Of course people are going to grieve extra hard knowing that the man that brought them so much joy was so sad and experienced so much angst. 

Tony Soprano sums it up best, I think. 

And SHAME on anyone who feels he shouldn't be mourned because he "chose" to die. Depression is real and if you don't understand it, you shouldn't speak. 

In closing, instead of griping over which individual is receiving more attention, let's take this time to honor BOTH their lives. They were both men fighting the brave battle of existence; it's up to us as a nation to learn from their deaths and become better. That's how we pay our respect.

-Nick G.