Twitter Adds New List Function

July 26th, 2011 | By Edwin

Twitter has added a new list functionality to their tweeting service. What this does is that you can now group Twitter accounts by categories that you define. For example, if you have a bunch of your own friends’ tweets that you want to filter out, you can do it by viewing the custom list you created. What does this mean for the average reader of this blog?

Hip Hop Octopus’ List of Rapper Twitter Accounts

Rappers (and other similarly inaccessible public figures) are on Twitter to, hopefully, connect with their fans. The list I made gives you a chance to peer into the minds of some of your favorite rappers, 140 characters at a time. Feel free to utilize this resource. Also, if you are a rapper starting off and want some exposure, let me know and I’ll add you to this list. I’m aiming to build the most comprehensive collection of rapper thoughts possible.

Yo, Excuse Me Miss, Sorry for Hitting You

July 26th, 2011 | By Edwin

Chris Brown recently publicly apologized for rearranging (then girlfriend) Rihanna’s face. Another act of senseless violence that certainly doesn’t do any stereotypes or misconceptions about hip-hop culture any good.

A lot of the topics and themes around this traumatic event has been discussed heavily already, and I would feel like I would be beating a dead horse (no pun intended) if I discussed the implications of violence on women and such. But one thing that I would like to wonder is: how does a very public R&B singer ever recover from this, at the tender age of 19? Do you suddenly become the face of anti-abuse agencies, and educate others about your mistakes? Will writing a heartfelt apology song and releasing it as a single make a difference, ala T.I? Or do you vanish into the background, only to return with a reality TV show?

I am very interested to see how this saga will continue and to see how he chooses to recover from this. Maybe if he is successful he can go back to drinking milk and chewing gum again.

How 50 Cent Applies Marketing Knowledge to Himself

July 26th, 2011 | By Edwin

I read an article recently that appealed to me, mainly because it contained a strange hybrid of two topics, both which I find extremely interesting: hip hop and marketing. After reading the article, it made me realize that 50 Cent is a lot smarter than what people make him out to be (heck, even what he makes himself out to be) and that he could rightly be defined as a sort of hip-hop marketing guru.

A few takeaways:

1) His street cred, which was carefully cultivated after being shot multiple times, was starting to fade away. Ironically, his two immensely successful albums that center around this street cred started erode his tough image.

2) As typical with a lot of young rap stars or athletes who become immensely rich in a short period of time, hands begin appearing. Palms up. Asking for money. 50 Cent found himself surrounded with people who were only looking for their own interests, and not his.

3) Fifty Cent found that his social circle increasingly consisted of white guys, in suits. Corporate label guys in suits don’t necessarily give you a good sense of new trends in the street, where Fiddy came from.

After some introspective thinking, what did he do? He recorded a track without his label’s knowledge and released to the public and watched for feedback (very Web 2.0). The public wanted harder stuff! He continually shortened the distance between himself and his fans with technology, and his “hustler’s mentality” now applied to Internet marketing with great success. Greene’s great article explains more, but with Twitter, the Internet, and all the marketing knowledge rap stars are now in possession of, the audience has less patience for rap stars who don’t get it. Except Lil’ Wayne, who can do whatever he wants.

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Snoop Dogg as a Football Coach and Mentor

July 20th, 2011 | By Edwin

Recently, I read an article (located here) about Snoop Dogg playing a much different role than his usual weed-smoking, pimpalicious self. He was described in the article as a hard-working mentor to disadvantaged kids who works to keep them off the street. Meet: Coach Dogg.

Snoop has gone through a rather drastic metamorphosis throughout the years, with his early success resting on his reputation as a West Coast Crip OG and his latest successes relying on reality show appeal and ridiculous wardrobe. In his early days, however, he was decried as a horrible influence on the youth of America. His rap songs were immensely popular and frequently forayed into the science of pimping out bootylicious hoes and promoting the benefits of smoking a certain green plant.

Despite this though, a hidden aspect of the Big Boss Dogg hasn’t had quite the same amount of promotion: Snoop Dogg is an active child mentor, football coach and philanthropist. I Googled this when I saw a giant blue “Snoop Dogg” football bus rolling through Whittier, CA one day. Snoop Dogg’s program is unique because the benefits really cut away at gang violence at the roots:

1) The league allows ex-cons to focus their energy into a productive cause – too often we do not give those who have been punished for their misdeeds a chance to actually succeed in society

2) A big factor for gang members is that they do not have a sense of family or belonging from their biological families or they do not have a way to spend their free time. The football program instills strong male role models and solves the problem for both.

3) Gang disputes between rival gangs, such as Crips and Bloods, are left away from the field as a sort of peace treaty. If bitter gang members can do what the Democrats and Republicans apparently cannot, that must be a positive sign.

Snoop also enforces a dress code to get “players out of the hood culture” in order to give them a sense of order. The rapper also is approachable, demands no special treatment and tries his best to have the football league be a symbol of what can be accomplished with a little money and PR. Programs in Dallas and Pittsburgh are interested and I hope it catches on. Play on, S N double O P!

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