This video of Lil Wayne just got me emotional (click for a breath of fresh air)

I'm just going to put the video first. Please watch it and then finish reading my comments below.






As a qualifier:
I have friends who were/are pretty big fans of his music, and personally I like a lot of his pre-2010 stuff. I'm out of the loop with current music, and I think producers and labels pressure rappers to write certain stereotypes that they think they can sell and maintain some sort of image, so whilst saying I don't really like his image, maybe it's just that, a carefully crafted facade that's earned him many millions. Or, well who the hell knows he certainly has his own style....I don't like the new videos with occult/demon/illuminati references and imagery, but he was always very upfront about thanking the people who helped him on the way and unashamedly citing Nirvana as one of his biggest influences growing up. So the guy seems pretty damn candid.

Oh and I honestly hate that Samsung phone commercial demonstrating it's waterproof by Lil Wayne pouring champagne all over it...
but let's be honest here, for the money Samsung paid him, I'd probably eat a can of dog food live on the Tonight Show for a week!


Anyway, it's not like Lil Wayne is unaware racist people exist in the world, but Shannon Sharp was really trying to get him to say racism is pervasive, or systemic, or a problem in the US, and he simply stuck to his guns, stating his own experiences, and remembering the guy who saved his life clearly wasn't racist.


Not that he needs respect from a nobody like me, but I was seriously impressed. He even stated his fear people will accuse him of taking the 'wrong' side, sure enough several comments on Youtube already have people accusing him of 'cooning'.



.

a reply to: 8675309jenny

1:06 See the look he gave? That is the same look I've personally seen from every black person I've brought up the topic with in my personal life. They are as tired of it as I am.

If he's doing anything to break the stereotypical black current black role model, I'm all for it. Not a fan of his music but he seems like a very decent human being.

To me, it seems here on ATS were all huge critics of the media and TPTB and we question the narrative and motive regarding they information they bring forth. Do you think it's that far fetched that they want black folks to only been seen in a certain light?

originally posted by: JinMI
a reply to: 8675309jenny

1:06 See the look he gave? That is the same look I've personally seen from every black person I've brought up the topic with in my personal life. They are as tired of it as I am.

If he's doing anything to break the stereotypical black current black role model, I'm all for it. Not a fan of his music but he seems like a very decent human being.

To me, it seems here on ATS were all huge critics of the media and TPTB and we question the narrative and motive regarding they information they bring forth. Do you think it's that far fetched that they want black folks to only been seen in a certain light?

Yea, I'm really not sure, maybe there's even a battle of competing factions in the media like the old days of Hearst and Pulitzer. Sometimes the media seem hellbent on reporting ANYTHING EXCEPT crime commited by minorities, and then other times they're covering riots non-stop and obviously showing people in a bad light.

Combine it with the FACT that George Soros has paid to transport instigators into many protest areas and you have to wonder who's really racist, and who does any of this benefit?? Or do they not even give a sh!t which side is what; do they simply want to create civil unrest???

To what end??? I mean are they actually THAT afraid of the people unifying and possibly overthrowing this broken rotten system in DC?? Maybe their fears are justified, I've watched the world change so drastically before my eyes in the last 20 years that I can hardly believe it.

Maybe they're right to be shiiting their pants.

a reply to: 8675309jenny

Or do they not even give a sh!t which side is what; do they simply want to create civil unrest???

Yes, absolutely. If we are fighting each other, then we are not fighting "them."

I mean are they actually THAT afraid of the people unifying and possibly overthrowing this broken rotten system in DC??

Yes, absolutely.

You have seen the two "chosen" candidates for presidency, yes? If there was ever a doubt as to subverting the will of the American people, there shouldn't be now.

a reply to: 8675309jenny

I think it is important to understand, that this man, because of his "blessings" is, by his own admission, in no position to form an opinion, because he lacks experience of the subject matter. He is aware of that himself, and although it is not his habit to follow these things with any regularity, he is aware that his experiences have been modulated by the staggering good luck he has had. He knows that things are happening to other people, but because he does not have experience himself, he only comments about what he knows, and that is fair enough.

The refreshing thing here, is that he is unwilling to step outside the boundaries his experience has placed about him, and keep his commentary personal, and real. That is commendable. However, it is only as commendable as would be commentary given by someone who has experienced racial violence, or ostracisation, and kept it factual when spoken to.

But that being said, it is good to hear from someone, especially someone well and widely known, who is prepared to accept the limitations of their own experience. Too many people all over the world, are prepared to say to themselves and the world, "if it has not happened to me, then it never happens" and that is NOT what Mr Wayne is saying at all.

a reply to: 8675309jenny

Yeah, I recently shared this video with my cousin on FB who is adamant that everyone is racist, we just don't realize it if we aren't being overt about it (she's a white, college-aged millennial, if that tells you anything).

I'm like you--I'm not a fan of his image, and I really don't like his voice, but I respect the man after watching this video. To be fair, I've had little exposure to who he really is otherwise, so maybe I'm going off too little information, but he seems intelligent enough and seems to be a fan of common sense, which are two things I can appreciate.

Much respect for telling it from his own perspective instead of just giving in to the pressure and going along with the narrative.

Reminds me of Tupac's last interview at the '96 MVA... Lil Wayne needs to be careful when stepping off the reservation.

@1:55

originally posted by: TrueBrit
a reply to: 8675309jenny

I think it is important to understand, that this man, because of his "blessings" is, by his own admission, in no position to form an opinion, because he lacks experience of the subject matter. He is aware of that himself, and although it is not his habit to follow these things with any regularity, he is aware that his experiences have been modulated by the staggering good luck he has had. He knows that things are happening to other people, but because he does not have experience himself, he only comments about what he knows, and that is fair enough.

The refreshing thing here, is that he is unwilling to step outside the boundaries his experience has placed about him, and keep his commentary personal, and real. That is commendable. However, it is only as commendable as would be commentary given by someone who has experienced racial violence, or ostracisation, and kept it factual when spoken to.

But that being said, it is good to hear from someone, especially someone well and widely known, who is prepared to accept the limitations of their own experience. Too many people all over the world, are prepared to say to themselves and the world, "if it has not happened to me, then it never happens" and that is NOT what Mr Wayne is saying at all.

Racism isn't holding anyone back. I'm a black guy who grew up in the south and while I have most certainly experienced racism, it would be a huge stretch to claim it held me back. I'd say anyone who wasn't an adult in the 60s / 70's or earlier has not really experienced true racism.

When I talk to my parents and grandparents, the stories they tell me is TRUE RACISM. They are old enough to have experienced true segregation and colored water fountains, sitting at the back of the bus, etc. They marched during the civil rights movement.

Even though I am in my 40s, the stuff I experienced would probably only qualify as a microaggression and I'd bet my experiences are way worse than anything someone in the 20s has experienced today. I won't even try to compare my experience to my parents as it would be insulting to what they went through.

Blaming racism these days would be like a pro football player complaining that a mosquito bite is preventing them from doing well on the field.

a reply to: 8675309jenny

I know a guy.

(yeah, strictly anecdotal)

He took a leadership position in a large organization. He wasn't white.

Every day for his first week, a tire on his vehicle was punctured. And every day, that first week, he got a new tire.

After that first week, he put a sign up in his vehicle. It read;

"Thank you for thinking of the safety of my wife and children. I did not realize that my tires were in such poor condition. Your actions probably prevented a blow-out or worse. Subsequent actions on my tires are covered under a warranty through Les Schwab Tires, so you'd be supporting a local business and local employees.
Thank you."




It's not that racism doesn't exist any more. It does. But how we deal with it speaks louder than anything else.


Edit; oh, and after he put up the sign, the damage stopped.

I have been showing this video to everyone I know for a few days now.

a reply to: Edumakated
I just have to ask, what area of the south did you grow up in? I also grew up in the south and in the 1990's racism was what pretty much defined that era for me and everybody I knew. Fights between black and white groups every day at school, some people were stabbed, people were bringing guns to school for protection, and some white parents chose to home school their kids so they wouldn't be in a class with black people.

The KKK were burning crosses on all my neighbors lawns and holding rallies pretty much every day in our town. There was a town about 45 mins north from me that had a sign on the outskirts warning any black people to not be in the town after the sun set. Our high school mascot was literally a locally famous slave owner waving a rebel flag. And the attitudes aren't that much different today. I really can't see racism today as being this overblown thing that isn't happening still.