Kanye To The: Kanye West

Excuse me for being slow, but you're really Brandon?? Was that you who said: "Show em what's up, show em how you get down..."   lol!  wow...Small world. I think I saw some of your tweets. Good for you! 

haha yes that's me. No I didn't say that I was in the back of the ballroom watching after I finished introducing him. That's where I flipped out haha. Thank you! I'm still on cloud 9 from the whole thing haha.

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haha yes that's me. No I didn't say that I was in the back of the ballroom watching after I finished introducing him. That's where I flipped out haha. Thank you! I'm still on cloud 9 from the whole thing haha.

aww man..I'm jealous of you for getting a freestyle S/O!   Did you use info from this great thread for your intro? hehehe j/k


I saw a lot of thirsty tweets, though--did the females behave during the Q&A? Oh and did anyone ask his thoughts of Travyon Martin? Just curious..

aww man..I'm jealous of you for getting a freestyle S/O!   Did you use info from this great thread for your intro? hehehe j/k


I saw a lot of thirsty tweets, though--did the females behave during the Q&A? Oh and did anyone ask his thoughts of Travyon Martin? Just curious..

haha relatively. This one girl sneezed, in the middle of his speech he said "bless you" to her and all of these other girls started sneezing. Some chicks also asked him what they like in a woman and stuff like that. He kind of touched on the Trayvon Martin scenario by addressing it during his speech. He basically talked about what we have to do as a people to prevent things like that from happening in the future.

haha relatively. This one girl sneezed, in the middle of his speech he said "bless you" to her and all of these other girls started sneezing. Some chicks also asked him what they like in a woman and stuff like that. He kind of touched on the Trayvon Martin scenario by addressing it during his speech. He basically talked about what we have to do as a people to prevent things like that from happening in the future.

ahaha! So that's what the tweet I quoted meant about girls fake sneezing lmao That's too funny.  What did he say we needed to do to prevent a tragedy like Trayvon's? Not walk at night or something?  Just curious....And what part of his speech resonated with you the most, if I may ask? (these are my last questions, I promise lol I'm just surprised to see he got such a strong reaction from his speech and it's not often you get such up-close & personal reporting!  )

ahaha! So that's what the tweet I quoted meant about girls fake sneezing lmao That's too funny.  What did he say we needed to do to prevent a tragedy like Trayvon's? Not walk at night or something?  Just curious....And what part of his speech resonated with you the most, if I may ask? (these are my last questions, I promise lol I'm just surprised to see he got such a strong reaction from his speech and it's not often you get such up-close & personal reporting!  )

it's not a problem at all. Well in the beginning he discussed how the ghost of  emmett till used to scare him when he was younger. As he was talking about that he kind of compared that briefly to the Trayvon Martin case, considering both were racial. Again he didn't really spend a lot of time on this but when he mentioned it seemed like he was suggesting people have to be greater than this in order to overcome these past barriers.

The part of the speech that resonated with me the most was when he discussed his grammy nominations. He told a story about how he was selected for 5 and that he had full confidence that he would at least get 4/5 haha. When it was time for the awards he didn't win any and Kanye had won the last one that he was hoping to get. Even though he "failed" at winning the awards, he bounced back which made him ready to believe even more than the first time that he would be great.  He brought up Kanye and how he has had no problem believing in himself since day one haha.

it's not a problem at all. Well in the beginning he discussed how the ghost of  emmett till used to scare him when he was younger. As he was talking about that he kind of compared that briefly to the Trayvon Martin case, considering both were racial. Again he didn't really spend a lot of time on this but when he mentioned it seemed like he was suggesting people have to be greater than this in order to overcome these past barriers.

The part of the speech that resonated with me the most was when he discussed his grammy nominations. He told a story about how he was selected for 5 and that he had full confidence that he would at least get 4/5 haha. When it was time for the awards he didn't win any and Kanye had won the last one that he was hoping to get. Even though he "failed" at winning the awards, he bounced back which made him ready to believe even more than the first time that he would be great.  He brought up Kanye and how he has had no problem believing in himself since day one haha.

Cool. I am reading his book and I read the part about how the "ghost of Emmett Till" used to haunt him. A lot of people have made mention of Emmett in relation to Trayvon so I figured he would too.  And funny, I am right at the part where he talks about Kanye!  Perfect timing.....Anyway, thanks for the info and congrats to you again on a successful event!


His speech tonight at University of Missouri-St Louis was a hit as well, judging by the tweets. If he comes to my city, I'll have to check him out.  I knew he gave speeches, but I didn't know how good he was.

I'll just post a few tweets from tonight:









If there are any UMSL students reading this, feel free to give your first-hand account....we on a roll!! lol 

It's a big weekend for Common in his hometown.

He kicked things off by throwing out the first pitch at the White Sox season opener today.
Here's video: http://mlb.mlb.com/video/play.jsp?content_id=20578455&topic_id=8878818&c_id=cws&v=3&tcid=tw_video_20578455 Looks like it hit the ground a bit but hey, they played "Southside".



Common is also holding his Common Ground Foundation's Annual Gala in Chicago this weekend, followed by an after party.  The gala honors people doing great work for others (this year it's Harry Belefonte, last year Maya Angelou) and also serves as a fundraiser for the charity. 

Foundations like Common's are much needed in Chicago right now--the murder rate is at an all-time high, up 60%. smh....For more info about Common Ground Foundation go here-->http://www.commongroundfoundation.org/

Grammy Winner Common Says Chicago Needs to Turn Obstacles into Possibles
The Common Ground Foundation
http://www.myfoxchicago.com/dpp/good_day/common-ground-foundation-stop-chicago-violence-empower-youth-creative-arts-self-worth-20120412
FOX Chicago News

Chicago - Grammy winning hip hop artist and South Side native Common is back home this weekend. He'll throw out the first pitch at the white sox home opener, Friday morning.

But he's also here for a big fundraiser, for The Common Ground Foundation.

The musician’s foundation empowers youth through creative arts. Common believes that if the community gives young people the opportunity to fulfill their dreams, more often than not they will achieve their goals and learn an important lesson in self worth.

Considering the gang and gun violence that currently plagues Common’s hometown, the artist said it is essential to instill spirituality, family and love in Chicago kids. He said the community needs to re-institute its values, and remind kids that they are great.

One way they can do that is through creative pursuits.

His foundation provides opportunities for kids to develop their passions – “you work toward it because you love it.” By giving kids the opportunity to succeed, they’ll know what it feels like to accomplish something great. Then they can do it again and again.

Common said that if kids can learn that their life is worth something, they’ll know that others’ lives are worth something too.

But in order for this to happen, the community has to reach out, change, and improve neighborhood programs to afford kids these great opportunities.

Also, yesterday Common stopped by MTV studios in NY to appear on some new show.  He was joined by Biz Markie, Fat Joe and others.

I think Draya is the host of the show


With Dev


Last weekend Com was in the studio working on music....

I hope common releases the OG version of the Believer.

Good pick...legendary like The Roots.....of Alex Haley

I hope common releases the OG version of the Believer.

Which version is this?


On the former thread I posted a clip of Common talking w/Free (at  Howard University) about this dude
who went up & started rapping for Common & would not stop. Free was ctfu over how long it was...Well the clip surfaced! lol I wonder how many random people just run up on Com with their raps like that? 


Also, Common will appear on HLN tonight (9pm central) to talk about "Thanks A Thousand," a promotional deal he struck with Western Union. He performed in NY today to kick off the campaign.



OK, now let's hear this collab.!!


FYI: I've updated & rearranged a few things on the OP.

Got genuine love for this thread and the effort put in to it.

Common's song "The Believer," featuring John Legend, will be used in the new commercial for USA Basketball and the new Jeep Wrangler's promotional deal. Common also narrates the ad. This is some great promo for Common. It's about time!

http://mediadecoder.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/04/22/jeep-signs-on-as-olympic-basketball-sponsor/

The United States Olympic program might not have picked its basketball team yet, but the team already has a full lineup of sponsors.

USA Basketball, the nonprofit governing body for basketball in the United States and organizer of the Olympic basketball team, will announce Jeep as its newest sponsor and the Jeep Wrangler the “official vehicle partner of USA Basketball.”

The campaign will feature Chris Paul, a point guard for the Los Angeles Clippers and a finalist for the 2012 Olympic basketball team, as its spokesman. A television ad featuring Mr. Paul will include a voice-over and music by Common, and the tag line, “A legendary vehicle supporting a legendary team.”

The new ad.......it's nice!  :


the making of the ad...


and here's a link to Common performing "Testify" at the Team USA/Jeep Wrangler launch event last night 4/22
http://www.viddy.com/video/54a1abe1-632d-4da8-8e89-af6489855625

If I ever see this add on tv

"Be".

Got genuine love for this thread and the effort put into it.

I totally agree 

"You can tell that it's mine when you look in my eyes"

That line isn't in the song but it's in the version they use in the ad....

If I ever see this add on tv

Me too!  Per the press release below, the campaign will debut Saturday, April 28th. 
http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/english-releases/the-jeep-brand-and-usa-basketball-announce-partnership-148491625.html

"You can tell that it's mine when you look in my eyes"

That line isn't in the song but it's in the version they use in the ad....

Oh, yeah, you're right. lol I knew something seemed different.


I guess one could argue that letting your song be featured in a Jeep ad is a form of "selling out" or whatever.  But, IMO, this type of promo tie-in is exactly what Common should be doing to get exposure for his music.  He and his team have been doing smart marketing or branding IMO. He's making his coins by associating himself with products that have some meaning and fit his image. 

I mean,  to have your song be used as a sort of anthem for the 2012 Olympics promo is a big deal.  Plus, Common and basketball go hand and hand, between his All-Star celeb game appearances (albeit a bit embarrassing for him lol) and his role as Scott McKnight in "Just Wright". 

Common's beard is napping up again and he's been spending a lot of time in Calgary lately so that can only mean one thing--the return of wild-man Elam Ferguson! Season Two  of "Hell On Wheels" is on deck.


Also, I don't know if this was ever posted, but I don't know why people hold onto unreleased projects like this smh. I like the sound of this unreleased track:
Raphael Saadig feat Common and Ledisi "They Don't Know You " (prod by Steve Spacek):

Back in 2004 Raphael Saadiq opened his studio doors to Spacek to produce an album for one of his sub-labels. The album was suppose to be called Pookie Blue Room and features 10 songs produced by both Steve and Morgan with Raphael singing on all of them and featuring guest appearances by Common , Q-Tip , Ledisi, Steve Spacek and Sir Bentley (you know it was 2004 when you see Sir Bentley’s name, ahaha)…anyhow the album was never completed and therefor never released…   http://www.okayplayer.com/news/audio-raphael-saadiq-x-common-x-ledisi-they-dont-know-you-unreleased-2004-track.html