BRANZIL: Extraordinary MC

It has been several months since I have brought you guys a post and it has been my fault! Some of it has been lack of motivation and some of it has been problems with my technology but this will bring me back in focus.

I was introduced to hip hop from a friend of my brother and the first TAPE I was ever given was a  group called Whodini and the album was named 'Escape' and this was the song that created my love for hip hop: 'Five Minutes of Funk'

I am definitely bias but a Whodini show is a must see for every hip hop fan! Ok, let's skip a few years and go to Public Enemy and their album entitled 'Yo! Bum Rush The Show' amazing album! Then PE dropped the best album in music history entitled "It Takes A Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back"! This is their video from the song 'Black Steel in the Hour of Chaos'

Now let's go a few more years down the road to a Houston group that changed hip hop and took it into a whole other direction and they are the Geto Boys. Everyone has their 'Mind Playing Tricks on Me'

Now, here is where I am going with all of this and I promise it makes sense.  Imagine being a child from birth being around all of this hip hop and absorbing knowledge for 15 years now. I'm not just saying he has listened to the music but he grew up surrounded by these legends as A List Uncles. Imagine getting to the point where over night you go from introvert to extrovert and become this Extraterrestrial Rap Monster! This is how Branzil the MC was created.

I was able to sit down with Branzil for an exclusive interview and I'm sure the first of many to come. Seeing his enthusiasm, effort and planning that he puts into his writing brings back that love I have for hip hop. He has a very mature and creative mind but what I want you to pay attention to is the freestyle and see how he can describe the ordinary in such a simple but complex fashion.

Before I leave you wanting to go grab your pad and pen I want to show you another cosigner of Branzil from one of the very legends described above from the Geto Boys 'Willie D':

Now it's time to go follow the prodigy:
https://www.facebook.com/pages/Branzil/136935799774824
https://twitter.com/#!/Branzil_

My Evening With The Bucks

I received an early birthday present in the form of comped Rockets vs. Bucks tickets courtesy of Scott Skiles and the Milwaukee Bucks coaching staff on Wednesday night!  Honestly, I have been down on the NBA for several different reasons ranging from "flopping" to the attitudes of the players (not all players)! Basketball has always been my favorite sport I love the way they dribble up and down the court...sorry, I have hip hop turrets. 

Anyway, I do love all things about the game but before I get to the game itself I want to talk about the atmosphere.  I used to think all the beautiful women in Houston had moved away or were in hibernation but i have found they are in the Toyota Center during Rocket games! While on the subject of women I must say I was disappointed in the RPD (Rocket Power Dancers) because first they have been moved to the exit tunnels which isn't their fault i guess. Second, they used to do work on trampolines during timeouts with Jordan and Doc J style dunks with flips and everything. Where did that go RPD??? 

The pre game is the time to get people excited, ready to cheer and go crazy! I did enjoy the pre game but I'm a laid back guy so my excitement stays cool.  The only time I ever got overly excited with a pre game was in Cincinnati at my first Bengals game.  If you squint at the pic above you can see Clyde Drexler in his chair giving his excellent views on the game.  I would like to take this time to ask the Rockets to bring back Calvin Murphy the best color guy in the game! Now is the time for:

As I was going through the line ups for both teams I recognized a couple of the Bucks and most of the Rockets but wasn't expecting much but from the tip off the game was actually pretty exciting.

Here is the pic of the tip off! Exciting?  From the beginning of the game the Bucks owned this game with the play of Jennings and the big aussie Bogut! I had never seen Bogut play in person before but I was very impressed with his skill level and mostly impressed by his Mutumbo finger wave after blocking several Rockets shots.  The Rockets finally found their stride and took the lead and only to give it up by letting the Bucks make something like 15/30 of their 3pts shots! Defense or should I say lack of was the collapse of the Rockets on this night and I bet Mr Morey wishes he would have kept his "asset" Chuck Hayes! Hayes is the best big defender in the league and now he is in Sacramento with another UK ex DeMarcus Cousins. Speaking of UK you know I couldn't end this post without speaking on Houston's last UK representative and hometown WV boy Patrick Patterson #54!

I am going to leave this post with the highlights of the game from the Milwaukee Bucks perspective especially since the tics were provided by the Bucks coaching staff. I had a great time and if you get a chance to hit up a NBA game I highly suggest you do!



  

"Hummingbird" The Flavor Explosion

Last Monday morning I was fortunate enough to have a cupcake and coffee date at Crave Cupcakes Houston.  Don't worry ladies because I am still single. Crave is a place I frequent for the cupcake quality and proximity to Starbucks because a caramel latte is the perfect liquid to wash down the perfect cupcake.
Walking in I had already predetermined my fate and was going for the Vanilla Bean flavor which is my safety and "test pick"! Anyway, the young lady I was with was looking to get the Hummingbird flavor which I wasn't familiar with so I asked the young smiling cupcake attendant the flavor of the cake. She replied it was the cinnamon cake with pineapple, banana and my favorite cream cheese topping with chopped  almonds! How could I say no to that combination of flavors all rolled into to one cake? So, we ordered one Hummingbird and one Cinnamon to share and compare. Both are pictured in the photo which shows my excitement over the wonderful creations! The first bite of the Hummingbird was pure excitement and when I was asked what I thought of the cake the only description that came to mind was, "Each bite is a flavor explosion on my palate!" I highly recommend the Hummingbird and the Cinnamon and I am leaving a direct link to the Hummingbird which also has the days scheduled to serve the cupcake. https://www.cravecupcakes.com/cupcake/hummingbird

Hip Hop Cop

I think this may need a little background before I put my opinion on the topic. I have been a fan and friend of hip hop since graded school and often rediculed for that fact. So, I have become passionate about and critical of anyone who tries to downgrade the integrity and character of many artist who I have befriended. It is never easy to stand alone and be different and to be a leader and not a follower. So, here is my opinion and view on this movie I just watched about the "Hip Hop Cop". Just by the name of the movie I already had a very negative view of what this could be and what person in the NYPD would have the time to worry about artists while crimes are being committed. I was ready to turn the channel and watch Two and A Half Men until I noticed the movie was going to have the opinions of the artists on this list as well. The "Hip Hop Cop" who is named Derick Parker has created a list with rapper's profiles with all their personal information and if they had a criminal history. The info was compiled through years of surveilance without warrant. Mr. Parker claims he was told to compile this list by the NYPD Police Chief at the time and was for the artists protection because of the violence that surrounds Hip Hip. Why do I think this list was created? I believe it was created because Mr. Parker being an ex producer and fan of hip hop wanted to stay around the industry and in saying this he currently does security for several big named artists. That simple? Maybe not. Any medium that reaches millions of people is closely followed by government officials. Popularity and a platform to reach the masses could potentially cause trouble for "The Man" so that is hidden behind possible security threats to the nation and gives rights to these officials to do the surveilance. In closing so many more opinions popped into my mind but I want to hear yours so please create a dialogue through commented on my post. Thank you for reading and God Bless.