REFLECTION & REASON

Kanye West's 6th album " Yeezus " was released on June 18th, 2013, and I finally picked up a copy. I can't lie... I automatically felt like he was pulling a fast one. Putting out a CD with no cover art, no labels, no track listing, and no nothing...but a price tag and a lyrical warning label. Then I was annoyed with that big piece of orange tape at the side that is now ripped and sticky and gross, and makes my brand new blank case look old like something from 1995. Then I listened to the first track and was like...WTF? First thoughts: is Kanye trying to prove something? That we'll still buy his album with no promotion, and have it sound like GARBAGE and still have it hit the charts? Arrogant. Over the top. And then I realized that I had done just that. I had bought the album just because it existed, and because I'm a Kanye fan. And that even though the first few tracks sounded like hot noise, that I would still play the disc on repeat for the next week...

On the 11th day of the 1st month of the 2011th year, millions (7.7 to be exact) of viewers across the continent gathered at their televisions for a highly anticipated event: the return and rejuvination of The Game . And I’m not talking about the Raptors. (The Cast L-R: Coby Bell, Wendy Raquel Robinson, Hosea Chanchez, Tia Mowry Hardrict, Pooch Hall, Brittany Daniel) Thanks to day-long marathons, relentless reruns, massive Twitter-ing, casual conversations, and online petitions, the return of the 4th season of the BET program was a huge ratings bonanza. In fact, it set a ratings record for original programming on BET. I was right there on the bandwagon, wondering how Melanie and Derwin’s marriage was going, if Kelly and Jason would rekindle their flame, what was up with Tasha Mack and Rick Fox, and of course, even curious about TT, Janay, and the Sunbeams. The show was taken off the air in 2009, and I became a rerun fan. Just like I did with Sex and the City , Friends , and the countles...