HustleKnockin'

Oprah: "Jesus is Just Your Opinion."

Critics have joked for a while now about the "Church of Oprah" and her congregation of soccermom sycophants. While I'm far from an Oprah supporter, I've given her the benefit of the doubt on a number issues. That's is, until I saw this:

Jesus Christ Is Not A Sunday Christian (full ad)

One of my faves—People who think hitting the pews once a week makes them better than everybody else. This ad goes out to them. Feel free to click, drag and spread it as you see fit.

Jesus and Kanye

I know it's a little old, but the sentiments are forever.

what do you see?

Somebody with lots of free time on their hands came up with this. Not sure who, not sure why, not sure how… but they did.

Plus, I think they meant well, so I’m sharing…

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Two Weeks Ago...

Two Weeks Ago…
By: Hadji aka Black Canseco

Short ‘n’ Jay once talked about how things can change in just a few days. It’s true. Sometimes you don’t remember where you’ve been until realize where you are…

It’s been about 16 days since God smacked me upside the head… And I gotta tell you, I ain’t been mad since. It’s weird. I feel calm about so many things now. I mean, my list of things to get mad about really went from like 1,000 to like 3, maybe 5, if that.

Happy Belated New Years!

been a minute. been swamped packing, trashing and stressing over non-sense.

The result:

A glorious trip to the ER with chest pains. serious chest pains.

I spent the first day of 2007 with nitro patches over my heart, nitro pills under my tongue and cables and chords sticking out of every other part of my bod from chin to gut to butt.

Lessons learned:

#1-God's in charge--you're going on His schedule, so pack light. He moves quick.

#2-if it don't apply, let it fly. stress less, play more. help folks whenever possible.

#3 (more to come--i'm still learning...)

Lecrae Review

REVIEW:

Title: After The Music Stops
Artist: Lecrae
Label: Cross Movement Records 2006

Sorry Malice, sorry Hov, but Lecrae’s the real reason my favorite emcee is no longer my favorite. As a Christian, I have to say that I’ve almost always hated Christian rap. It’s made me cringe since I was a shorty.

Between Hammer’s Pray, Kirk Franklin’s joints and even Ye’s Jesus Walks from last year. I thought that nobody would ever do this thing even close to right. (And of course, you gotta walk the talk, so maybe Mr. West is a stretch—not that I’m throwin’ stones with all the bones in my closet. (But that’s another story.)

Review: After The Music Stops (Lecrae)

REVIEW:

Title: After The Music Stops
Artist: Lecrae
Label: Cross Movement Records 2006

Sorry Malice, sorry Hov, but Lecrae’s the real reason my favorite emcee is no longer my favorite. As a Christian, I have to say that I’ve almost always hated Christian rap. It’s made me cringe since I was a shorty.

Between Hammer’s Pray, Kirk Franklin’s joints and even Ye’s Jesus Walks from last year I thought that nobody would ever do this thing even close to right. (And of course, you gotta walk the talk, so maybe Mr. West is a stretch—not that I’m throwin’ stones with all the bones in my closet. (But that’s another story.)

Fortunate Setbacks…

I interviewed Phil tadros back in August for the first HustleKnockers feature. He was prepping Metroproper.com for a Sept. ’01 launch. Well now it’s October and obviously it’s MP isn’t up yet.

For anyone who’s interested, I checked in with him recently and he’s still fine-tuning MP. Should be up soon. The buzz is still there. Keep in mind Metroproper isn’t just a site, it’s an online community, so you’re talking about monstorous Tetrabites worth of servers and so much backroom stuff that’s it’s gonna be insane.

(And yeah, Phil’s still looking relaxed, as always.)

Ironically, I think the delays are working to his advantage. Why?

Have you noticed all the blowback that Facebook, MySpace (his two biggest competitors) are getting. They’re this/close to jumping the shark.

Now granted: Who wouldn’t want $600 Million worth of soaking? MySpace sold for $580 Mill, YouTube’s what? 1.6  Bill plus somebody’s first-born? FaceBook is gonna be what 400? 600 mill? (I’d settle for one percent of that with KTH.)

Squiddoo went for who knows what…

Mega Churches... Minor Marketers…

The two most marginalized groups in the marketing industry: Christians and Blacks. I said it, so deal with it. Once I accepted Christ I hit the daily double.

Funny thing about the ad world—it treats devoutly religious folks, Christians in particular like the anti-hipsters. We are kryptonite to their supercoolness secularism. Say Jesus at work and you get "Too Much Information!" Converesely I could talk guns drugs, sex... just like Kanye said.

I get into this in the second printing of KNOCK THE HUSTLE. (Yup there’s a second printing! Coming for the holidays. I swear!) Anyway… besides the marginalization, as consumers, the What-would-Jesus-Buy-ers got a lot of pull. Just ask TD Jakes, Creflo and the rest. They ain’t gotta give another sermon in they life.

Okay that came out wrong. Way wrong.

Is BET in Trouble?

BET is a sinking ship.

I ain’t trying to throw salt in the game, but Bob Johnson didn’t spend 18 years with his wife building that channel up and walk away from it like it he don’t know it; $3 Bill or no trey. He's a hustler but Hustlers got ego. They don't leave unless the gettin' is good. And BET shoulda been gettin' good, but it wasn't.

No, I think he cashed out for a couple reasons (besides a nasty divorce.)

Bob saw the writing on the walls. He saw the sag in the thongs.

Tired of Booty Black Flicks?

It’s super bob to the rescue!

Bob Johnson, founder of BET is starting up a movie studio dedicated to black family flicks. No lie. So the braintrust who brought you classic TV fare like:

Cita’s World…

endless reruns of The Parkers…

The parade of screaming comics coonish-yelling-the only-3-differences-between-whites-and-blacks-they-can-think-of-while-ripping-off-Richard-Pryor aka ComicView…

weekly airings of Trois

and of course, that bastion of black womanhood, BET: UNCUT…

Oh, did I mention that BET shows music videos?

And here’s the best part: Bob’s not waiting to be bought out by a conglomerate like he did with BET in 2000. No, this time, he’s partnering with the founders of Miramax right out the gate.

Full story below:

Was this guy the answer?

On the one hand, I’m sorry to see anyone go. On the other hand, I’m a little frustrated, that something like this gets celebrated. I’m not sure why. Equality is never as one-sided as Black and White…
And maybe that’s what bugs me about it. That it actually takes a client, a so-called “suit” to push for something as innovative as inclusion and diversity, but only because it “makes good business sense.” And that our industry, which swears to be the most creative thing this side of Hollywood couldn’t get any more milquetoast if it tried.
Ironically, nothing’s gonna change until you get more Sam Thurm out there.
Or until people stop debating whether not equality has anything to do with business sense, “giving back” or political correctness and accept it for what it is:

Right.

With all that said, the business community lost what seemed to be a pretty good guy this week.
Remember business ain’t everything.
Go home and kiss your family and hug somebody you care about and thank God for breathing.
The buildings will probably be here on Monday.
You’re not promised tomorrow.

Would you like some white bread with your beer?

Okay, so I'm chopping it up with a buddy of mine the other day. Can't say he's my boy or my partner. Or een my dawg. maybe if it were 1999. but it's not and he's white. So he's just my buddy.

He'd be my bro if he were about 25; but he ain't so, buddy it is.

We joke like that. known him since college. Anyway...

He's in the beverage game. more proof that he's white. he says beverage. a lot. why harp on the "white" thing? because he calls me up, we talk about liquor--he's in the marketing biz--he tells me that some big dumb white client he works for is struggling to move cases.
again. he ads, "these guys are too white for their own good."

Finally, after Ted Ferguson bud guy.. umpteen incarnations of blonde vs. brunette jokes
SNL vs. Mad TV styled bits, somebody besides me, unprompted just says it.

They're too white for their own good.

So this is what teens want...

While on NPR last week, Deborah Patton of VNU Media fixated on the infamous "youth conference". after a little digging, i found out what she was talking about.

It's called What Teens Want. Should be called, WHAT MARKETERS WANT TEENS TO WANT. Beleve me, that's all this unholy hell of a farce will amount to. It takes place in NYC July 13.

www.whatteenswant.com for more.

Hadji on NPR pt.2

I've said once, and I'll say it again: Corporate America makes people soft. squeezably charmin, pillow soft... so soft they get "handlers"... they have "people"...

Corporate People lose their friggin' minds they go so soft.