R.I.P. David Carradine

The 72-year-old actor of “Kung Fu” and “Kill Bill” fame passed away in Thailand today of apparent suicide.

If you live in NYC help my friend OUT

My friend Justin Van Hoy recently found out that his Leukemia has relapsed and he needs your help! If you are in NYC this Sunday you can hopefully help his life and maybe someone else’s life. The swab takes 40 seconds to do, it is free (it normally costs $50), and you can do a good deed for the world.

Where: Lit Lounge 7 – 10pm Sunday, Jan. 18th 2009 (Big Thanks to Erik Foss!)

What: Following a Leukemia relapse, Justin is currently searching for a bone marrow donor match, which he desperately needs to survive.

Please come out to get the simple “mouth swab” test and find out if you have the rare ability to save the life of this incredibly talented artist and beloved friend.

Who: Thanks to DKMS Americas, the testing fee will be optional, but donations are requested and welcomed. We’ll have SWINDLE Swag, a silent art auction to help offset testing fees, DJ’s, and good company.

BONUS!!! ART LEGEND, WINSTON SMITH HAS GRACIOUSLY DONATED AN ORIGINAL PIECE OF HIS ART TO HELP WITH THE FEES OF TESTING PROCEDURES, SO IF YOU’RE NOT IN NEW YORK, YOU CAN STILL HELP JUSTIN AND GET A PIECE OF ART HISTORY WHILE YOU’RE AT IT!

The Death of Juan Epstein

So, this afternoon I was wondering why Peter hadn’t posted the most recent Cipha Sounds & Rosenberg show on Rosenbergradio.com.  My plan B is always to check Ciph’s page.  And that’s when Ciph declared Juan Epstein was DEAD.  Now, my initial reaction was that this was joke b/c back in June they kinda pulled this shit on us, we the loyal JE fans.  But after listening to the show, things definitely got heated.  Now I know Peter – we aren’t college roommates/best friend status – but I know him well enough to say he’s a stand-up dude who is not perfect like the rest of us but does mean well in everything that he does.  And I don’t know Ciph but he seems to me to be a dude that lives in a Black & White world that if you abide his rules and codes, life is cool.  When you don’t, shit gets hectic.  So listening to them argue on the air was painful.  Ciph was first to post about it stopping JE altogether and thus, Peter (in my opinion) is getting the most heat.  I checked in with Peter to see if this was just radio drama or the real deal and he confirmed its real.  I think issues btw the two were brought to the surface in an unhealthy manner in which their producer and boss should have just shut it down and let it be discussed offline.  Now, people who looked to them for entertainment and even a little of the hip-hop nerd in ourselves in somebody else will have to go somewhere else for that satisfaction.  Like I would with my brothers, I hope they patch things up and realize that $150 is not that big enough of an issue to end a buddening relationship and to deny the world the greatness of Juan Epstein.  Just my thoughts..

The Argument on the Radio

Ciph’s words on the situation and reader’s comments

Peter’s words on the situation and reader’s comments

Police arrest SNOOP from the Wire

Snoop has been arrested for failure to cooperate and some minor drug possessions.

Felicia “Snoop” Pearson, the actress who played a cold-blooded killer of the same name on the HBO series The Wire, was arrested on minor drug charges yesterday after police picked her up for refusing to cooperate as a witness in a murder trial, records show.

Members of the homicide unit forced entry into the 28-year-old’s Northeast Baltimore home Wednesday morning to serve a “body attachment” warrant, which would allow authorities to detain her, if necessary, until the Sept. 16 murder trial of Steven James Lashley.

Once inside the home, police said, they found two cigars containing suspected marijuana in an upstairs bedroom, and “loose plant material” was recovered from the top of a kitchen cabinet. Pearson was charged with one count of drug possession yesterday and was being held at Central Booking.

Authorities said Pearson watched Lashley stab three men, killing one, after an argument that began outside New York Fried Chicken on The Block in the fall of 2005, and she is expected to be called as a witness during the trial.

More Here.

Bernie Mac – Rest In Peace

News sources report today that Bernie Mac died of complications of pneumonia. Dilla’s passing was significant because of hip-hop’s loss. When we lost Biggie and Pun, I felt that lyricism would not be elevated as fast its potential could go. And when Pryor and Carlin died, I felt like we lost 2 monumental greats in comedy. But Bernie Mac’s death hits a more personal spot. Original Kings of Comedy changed my vernacular. There were countless laughs with my brothers and P.Cao about that Bernie Mac’s performance. (How many times have we seen this movie?) I got to see my Dad laugh and actually be excited about something. I mention of Bernie Mac changed his mood. That’s not going to happen as often anymore. Lastly, Bernie Mac was just a good man – a man of family, a man of his race, a man of success, a man of perseverance, and a man of his city (peace out to Chicago). Any ideas of what we can do to honor him or comments you feel, please post. The KTL family and our readers have lost our “man”.

REST IN PEACE – Bernard Jeffrey McCullough
October 5, 1957 – August 9, 2008