I think it's interesting how much ethnicity is tied into music. This is America and people are supposed to have freedoms but I think sometimes people are limited to what music they can and cannot listen to.

Historically, it has been only acceptable for black people to listen to rap music while white people are supposed to listen to rock, pop and country. It was awkward for white people to drive around and listen to rappers like DMX in the 90s.

Since then many things have changed. When Eminem first became famous, everyone was thinking "Who the hell is this white boy trying to rap?" Then people realized that he was really good and he paved the way for other white rappers to come along and for more white people to start listening to rap.

It's just interesting that although everyone has the freedom to listen to whatever they want to listen to, they still go along with the cultural norms and what they are expected to take interest in.

C.S.I and the evolution of race

I have been a huge fan of C.S.I for many years. I'm so in love with the Vegas version that I've been reluctant to watch the others. Last season, the producers killed off one of my favorite characters, "Warrick Brown" played by Gary Dourdan. Warrick was a C.S.I who often got caught up in trouble. He was a very likeable character, someone that audiences would look forward to watching.

Warrick was portrayed as a person who came into a bunch of trouble with the law. He was involved with gambling, strippers, hookers, alcoholism and more. He was portrayed in this negative way but also had some positive characteristics. He was loyal, hard working, and willing to help out any of his C.S.I teammates. Audiences identified with him because he was a great guy who wasn't perfect but was working towards a better life. People would watch the show to see him fight his problems and some weeks he would go back to old habits.

In the end of last season, Warrick got involved with strippers. He was framed for the murder of a stripper in Las Vegas. Later he was murdered in his car by someone he thought he could trust. The death of Warrick was sad for all fans of the show. Many people said they would never watch the show again.

Since then, C.S.I has replaced Warrick's character with Laurence Fishburne, better known as Morpheus from The Matrix. Fishburne is portrayed as a successful black professor, who is a doctor/professor/lawyer/C.S.I. His character is much more positive than Warrick's was. I like that there is a positive representation being shown through Fishburne's character. I think the show is much better without the negative portrayal of Warrick. Now that he's on the show, I find it hard NOT to watch it every Thursday night.

The N word

While watching Spike Lee's movie "Bamboozled," I noticed that the N word must have appeared hundreds of times. At one point, Pierre Delacroix daydreams about beating up his white boss beacause he keeps repeating the N word. Somehow he maintains his composure, being the better man.

This led me to thinking more about the N word. It's extremely offensive and brings back awful memories from the past. I just think the world would be better off without the word. It's too late now I guess, the word can never go away.

Racism Dies in Final Destination

Today I finally went out and watched the movie "Final Destination." I thought the movie itself was really great, but there was one particular scene that I'll never forget.

In the beginning of the movie, there is a huge crash at a Nascar race and 52 spectators get killed. One of the redneck Nascar fans survives the disaster and blames the black security guard for the death of his wife. Later on that night, he gets drunk and drives his tow truck over to the security guard's house. He begins digging a hole, trying to set a wooden cross up in the yard.

Somehow, in the middle of his drunk hatred, he gets caught up on a chain linked to the back of his truck and catches on fire. His truck starts rolling down the street, with him dragging behind it. His stereo starts blaring the song "Why Can't we be Friends" as he's pulled down the street on fire.

The death of the racist in this fictional horror-film was really powerful. The music playing made it kind of funny yet serious at the same time. The movie sent out the message that racism is cruel and that karma is a bitch.

If you're into this sort of movie, feel free to check out the scene...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lerlJpAuQoA

Race a factor in popularity?

"Pretty Boy" Floyd "Money" Mayweather, one of the most arrogant boxers I have ever heard of, just claimed during an interview that race plays a factor in his popularity. He claims that if he were white, that he would be a lot more popular than he is as a black man.

"If you're rich, you're a rich n-----," he said. "If you're poor, you're a poor n----. If you're smart, you're a smart n-----. At the end of the day, they still look at me as a n-----."

Mayweather went on to say:

"I wouldn't change my life for nothing in the world. There's nothing like being young, black and rich. But there are certain things you think about. If Floyd Mayweather was white, I'd be the biggest athlete in America. The biggest, the biggest. I know that for a fact."

I don't think that race plays any factor in the popularity of Mayweather at all. I think his attitude is what turns people off. Look at Muhammad Ali and Michael Jordan. They are both legendary black superstars. Race never held them back. If I could talk to Mayweather I would tell him that the only way to be more popular is to stop being so cocky. If he was a nicer guy with a smaller ego, he might be more popular. It also doesn't help that he's into boxing, a sport that is not as popular as it used to be.

I was on facebook today and came across a really insane quiz called "How black are you?" According to this quiz, your "race" is all dependent on the questions:

1. What's your favorite sport out of these?
2. What's your favorite food out of these?
3. Which gun would you rather have?
4. Which video game do you like better?
5. Where would you rather steal from?
6. What is closest to your mile time?
7. What is the color of your skin?

I don't know who made this quiz or what they were thinking but I definitely don't think it's cool to stereotype people like this. I'm sure it's just humor, but I just don't think it's right. I think people need to find better things to do in their free time.

Musicians and Manners

Anyone who watched the MTV video music awards last night knows about the drama between Kanye West, Beyonce and Taylor Swift. So, first off the night was a tribute to Michael Jackson. It was hosted by Russell Brand who insisted that the night should be all about love, in memory of the King of Pop. Against this wish for peace and love, Kanye West acted like a complete idiot by ruining the night for country singer, Taylor Swift.

Taylor swift won a VMA for best female performer or something like that, beating out hip hop singer Beyonce. Just as Taylor received her first moonman ever and was about to give her speech, Kanye West rudely tears the microphone out of Taylor's hands and gives a shout-out to Beyonce saying that her music video was the best of the year. Taylor stands there mortified, the whole crowd stares at Kanye, like "Are you kidding me?" I felt bad. Taylor Swift is such a sweet girl. She didn't deserve her spot to be blown up like that. After Taylor got the mic back, MTV cut the sound and went to commercials.

Later on in the show, Beyonce won an award. As she came up to the stage to receive it, she called for Taylor Swift to come out and have a chance to give her proper speech. Taylor Swift takes the microphone and says "Let's try this again..." She goes on to thank her brother's high school for letting her shoot her music video for "You Belong with me" on their property. So, in the end, the young country singer got to have her moment on the stage.

I thought that Kanye's actions were very childish and uncalled for. I also believe that if Taylor Swift wasn't a pastey country singer, but instead a hip hop singer like Beyonce, then Kanye West probably would never have interupted her speech like that.

Music is one of the things that helps make our culture so diverse. People should embrace the different types of music, instead of deciding that one genre is better than another. All artists deserve respect for their work and their form of self-expression, no matter what type of music they create.