whereimfrom2

Music-When people think of Chicago and music, they think of house, and for good reason.� We have been the home of many a pioneering house persons/groups/whatever.� I grew up listening to house music.� That's not to say that I was some freakish dancing adolescent with a house fetish, nope, but if you grow up in Chicago (and I'm sure it's the same in Detroit), you get used to going to parties or turning on the radio and hearing house music (at least back in the day).� Ask anyone aged 18 or older if they remember the "perculator."� Of course they will, along with the "pressure cooker," that was one of the kooky things about Chicago that outsiders couldn't get.� We are just a city of dancing fools.� Well, not really.� Some of us can't dance and I know because some of my friends have about as much rhythm as a member of the inactive melanin (read: white) clan.� However, I doubt that too many of you outsiders can eff with our footwork or steppin', so kill the yappin'.� Note:� I love Ten City and, in turn, Byron Stingly (Chi-town bay-bee!!).�

Anyway, the point I'm trying to get to is that we aren't especially known for our hip hop scene as it's eclipsed by our house reputation, but we (and pardon me for the use of this word) "represent" as hard as any other city, better in some cases.� When it became untrendy to b-boy, who was still working on their uprock?�� We were (trust me, this is a notable phenomenon cuz the folks in Atlanta cannot, for the most part, b-boy.� Common brought a litttle attention to the city as well as Twista (who was ill even before he started po-pimpin), Crucial Conflict, and Do or Die.� However, Common aint the only emcee in the city (yeah, i know he moved).� We have (to borrow a phrase from Cali) hella talent here.� We have All Natural, Pacifics, Ang13, Rhyme Fest (are you still rhyming?), Juice (one of the illest battle emcees, period), Psychodrama (backpackers don't hate), Qualo, etc--the list goes on and on.� Seeing that I have sworn off hip hop for the present (see my rants), I'm kinda behind, but best believe, we have some shit for ya and that's that.� Oh yeah, I must make mention of the radio programming that has made an attempt at staying true.� Shout out to WHPK, one of the only stations in Chicago where you can still hear decent hip hop.� I guess I have to shout out to Loyola's station too, which aint half bad and Columbia's (hosted by Dj 3rd Rail), which can only be heard if you stand on top of the damn building.� RIP Pinkhouse. Oh, who remembers this? On Ill, ha!�

Off the subject, but kinda on it, I love Donny Hathaway (he was born here) and was a fellow Libran.� I'm in the process of getting others to worship him as I do, but it's gonna take hard work to pry them from their post-peak Keith Sweat and Jagged Edges.� He definitely deserves it, but people are sleeping and he did die a little too soon.� If you feel me on that go to Rhino and demand that they re-issue "Donny Hathaway Live," "Donny Hathaway In Performance" or the "Come Back Charleston Blue"�album domestically and remaster it.� Do it for the kids.� If Wu-tang can be for the kids, so can you.