urban id 4 lifebeat (YSB) Urban id 4 lifebeat. by heather keets ...

slide up in the wrong one/end up in a casket/you're living foul/it ain't your style... "Slow Down," Brand Nubian

The nocturnal creatures of the hip-hop industry don't conduct business during daylight hours. So, on a sticky summer night at a soundstage on New York's west side, Heavy D, Q-Tip, Mobb Deep, Sexx and Channel Live are all gathered here to work. They're not recording some Craig Mack remix or shooting a video. Tonight, they're here for a higher purpose. But this is the music industry, so high purpose or low, things are running a bit behind schedule. Right now, there's not much to do except wait and watch Old Dirty Bastard (ODB), who is acting out a scene from The Jerk. Like a Black Steve Martin in a striped Polo, baggy jeans and low boots, he begins his soliloquy: "I don't need y'all. I don't need anybody. All I need is...this fork. And that's all I need...and this napkin...and that's all I need, too. Remember that movie? That was some funny shit." ODB is mad funny but, again, the reason they're here is no joke. They' re all waiting their turn to film public service announcements about the dangers of unprotected sex in the AIDS era. The announcements, which have been airing on MTV, BET and the Box since August, are part of a recently launched campaign called UrbanAID 4 LIFEbeat, the rap industry's response to the AIDS epidemic raging in Black and Latino communities. UrbanAID is the brainchild of model/activist Vernonica Webb (see " Reflections," page 80) and Uptown Records chief Andre Harrell. Webb, a board member of LIFEbeat (the music industry organization formed in 1992 to fight AIDS), called her friend Harrell and suggested they get together and do something to acknowledge the threat and educate those at risk in the wake of Eazy-E's death from the disease last March. Seven months after Eazy's death, it's not the shock; it's not even the feeling of the loss. It's that burning "it-could-have-been-me" sensation that is keeping Eazy's passing on people's mind, in and out of the industry. Indeed, the latest statistics are staggering: 75 percent of all new HIV infections are through heterosexual sex, 75 percent of women with AIDS in the United States are Black and Latina, and AIDS is the leading cause of death among Black and Latino women and men, ages 25-44. There is a real reason for concern. "I said [to Andre], we need to do something with LIFEbeat, something in response to the death of Eazy-E," recalls Webb. "Some sort of live concert from the Bronx and South Central. Well, Andre's middle name is Parlay, so he started thinking. 'Hmmm, Woodstock.... Woodstock for niggas, yeah. Live AID. No, Urban Aid. That's what we'll call it, UrbanAID.'" That call put in motion what is hoped will become one of the most comprehensive efforts by people of color in the music industry to address any of the three main ills--drugs, violence and AIDS--in Black and Latino communities. More than just clever lyrics are being used to address the problem. Harrell solicited $50,000 each from the "big six" record labels--Warner Music Group, BMG, Polygram, MCA, Sony and EMI--for the initial funding. With $300,000 in place for PSAs, overhead costs and printed literature, he called on the troops, starting with his own artists at Uptown, such as Heavy D. "Andre wanted to pull something together to spread the message about how dangerous this disease is," says Heavy D, who lost an uncle to AIDS and has another family member who is HIV-positive. "You never expect it. I mean, Eazy's death was like a wake up call for everybody. Rap has taken a lot of hits but none such as that." Labelmates Soul IV Real, Anthony Hamilton and Mary J. Blige are also participating, with Jodeci fronting the entire effort. As of this writing, Brandy, Onyx, Salt 'N' Pepa, Queen Latifah, Naughty By Nature, TLC, L.L. Cool J, Run DMC, Warren G, the Notorious B.I.G, Channel Live, Da Brat, Method Man, KRS-ONE, Patra, Buju Banton, Redman, Das EFX and actors Omar Epps and Malik Yoba are all involved with UrbanAID. "Jimmy grows and grows and grows, so let it/but keep in mind about the epidemic." --"Jimmy," KRS ONE The effort officially kicked off in May with a benefit concert at the Apollo Theater in Harlem, New York, featuring Jodeci, Mary J. Blige, Soul IV Real, Method Man, Sista and the Lost Boyz. From there, Jodeci embarked on a 10-city tour where local AIDS agencies passed out condoms, literature and provided counseling to concert goers. In some cities, the group also visited patients suffering with the virus and living at centers such as Stand Up Harlem, AID Atlanta and Project VIDA in Chicago, Illinois. In addition to the PSAs, UrbanAID is scheduled to present a 12-hour benefit concert at Madison Square Garden on October 5, featuring many of the above mentioned artists. The show will be either simulcast live on MTV and BET or taped and simulcast three nights later by the two stations. Nineteen thousand fans are expected, making this the largest event of its kind for R&B and hip-hop. At $25-$35 a ticket, UrbanAID is expected to pull in much more than its half-a-million dollar goal. Money collected will be distributed to AIDS agencies and organizations serving urban areas. "Satisfaction, I have the right tactics/and if you need 'em, I got crazy prophylactics." --"Benita Applebaum," A Tribe Called Quest With the success of this campaign riding to a great extent on artist credibility, one might wonder why Harrell chose the "Bad Boys of R&B" over, say, Heavy D, to be the UrbanAID frontmen? Some claim it's, in part, a ploy to help Jodeci bounce back from the weak sales of 1994's Diary of A Mad Band and to promote their latest release, The Show, The After Party, The Hotel, rather than an effort to extol the virtues of safe sex. True, Jodeci's lyrics don't exactly pump up celibacy: Every freekin' night/and every freekin' day/i wanna freek you girl/in every freekin' way. Nor did their bad-boy image do much good when in 1993, a woman charged that DeVante pointed a gun at her and K-Ci fondled her. (DeVante later plead guilty to a gun charge, and K-Ci plead guilty to sexual contact. Both members are on probation and must complete several hours of community service, a sentence that is fulfilled by the UrbanAID project.) Again, so why Jodeci? Harrell is the first to admit, "I needed something to clean up Jodeci' s image." But before sending them out for UrbanAID, "we had them learn about AIDS so that when asked, they could speak for the cause," says Harrell. Yet like kids at bathtime, Jodeci was hesitant to jump in. "At first, they were really afraid to have the words AIDS connected with them," says Webb. "They've become more compassionate. They're less afraid to be spokespeople." The change of heart can be attributed to the group's first-hand view of what the disease actually does to people. Says K-Ci: "When we go to the hospitals and see all the little kids suffering...it's just sad." Still, the group makes no excuses for its past actions or its raw image. "We make sexual music, that's what we do for a living. Somebody else may flip burgers for a living, but they ain't gonna stop flipping burgers because somebody chokes on one," explains Dalvin. K-Ci puts it this way: "People tell us all the time, 'We make love to your music.' But if you're gonna listen to us and it's gonna make you want to have sex, then fine. But be safe about it. Think about it." "For the lap/jimbrowski must wear a cap/just in case the young girl likes to clap." --"My Buddy," De La Soul There are other artists who, like the general public, are still in the dark when it comes to the facts about AIDS. "I ain't gonna lie, I'm not really too hip on UrbanAID," confesses ODB, who says he grew up "in the woods" where people still don't understand the dangers of the epidemic. "AIDS...it's crazy. I remember the good ol' days when we played run, catch and kiss or when we could go make love behind the bush. It ain't like that no more. In other words, it's time to be careful," he says. On the other hand, there are those like TLC, Queen Latifah, Salt ' N' Pepa and Michael Franti (formally with Disposable Heroes of Hypocrisy and now with Spearhead), who have been involved with AIDS prevention and awareness for years. In fact, Channel Live's Hakim and Tuffy have spoken on a number of social issues, including supporting Black journalist Mumia Abu-Jamal, who, as of this writing, had just been granted a stay of execution after serving 14 years in a Pennsylvania state penitentiary. Their knowledge of AIDS is deeper than most. "Most times the wrong questions about AIDS are asked," says Hakim, a former teacher in East Orange, New Jersey. "We should look at who benefits from AIDS, because somebody benefits. Just like somebody benefits from cancer research, people financially benefit from AIDS. I hate to say that, but it is true. And there has to be something done with the [increasing world] population. I think it's a form of genocide, whether intentional or non-intentional." He's not alone in his conspiracy theory. "I think [AIDS] can be controlled and it's not. Maybe the government doesn't wanna find a cure. [The AIDS rate] is high in Black and Latino communities; they might want to just 'kill the niggers' anyway," says Da Brat. "I think it's f- - up so we need to get together." It is possible that some may believe the message is hypocritical coming from rappers. After all, the maledominated hip-hop industry is notorious for its homophobia, misogyny and overall careless attitude about sex. Most artists even agree that the vibe in the industry hasn't changed much since Eazy's death. "A few people woke up but I still run into knuckleheads who are, like, 'I ain't gonna get it. I ain't worried about it. If I do, it's my time to die,'" says DeVante. The "do as I say, not as I do" school of thought, however, might just work here. All of the artists believe young people will listen to what they have to say. Says Prodigy from Mobb Deep: "They might listen to me 'cause they like my music and say, 'Well Prodigy said so...' I mean, a day in the 'hood is like this--niggas just be chillin', gettin' drunk. Then they try to find some round-the-way girls to take upstairs or something. That's how it was around my way. So you just gotta influence them. Tell 'em, 'use them condoms or don't have sex at all cause people are dying from that shit.' They might listen to me, they might not. At least, I could try.'" Harrell agrees, explaining that hip-hop artists are accessible to their fans, more so than White celebrities or even Black ones, like Magic Johnson. "Magic is big, very Hollywood. He's not really on a level these kids can relate to. I mean, we don't know how Magic was gettin' his freek on," says Harrell. I'm readin' about how it's transmitted/behavior I must admit it/who I slept with, who they slept with/who they, who they, who they slept with... --"Positive," Michael Franti, Spearhead It would also be nice if everyone practiced what they preached, but not everybody can claim personal responsibility. "The majority of us, we've all been promiscuous and unprotected," says Heavy D.A Tribe Called Quest's Q-Tip, who is Muslim and just took his Shia, is finding the decision to abstain a smart one, but difficult. "I have a girl now, but as I get more into my religion, I find that I'm not supposed to be doing certain things. I'm striving to be celibate. I'm trying to abstain, but I'm a human being. I'm not gonna use that as a crutch, but I am susceptible to doing wrong." Ask anyone involved if UrbanAID will make a difference and the answer is an unequivocal yes. If you still don't think so, picture this: You and yours are finally alone. The touching and feeling has worked you both into a mad, heated frenzy. Somewhere between a kiss and a touch you make the decision. But neither of you has a condom. Still, it's just this once and you've gone this far. It's damn near too late to stop, when this image of ODB (cornrows flyin', gold fangs shinin', just like in the "Baby I Like it Raw" video) is in your mind. You try to shake him out of your cranium, but you can't. All you can hear him screamin' is, "AIDS kills. Use a latex condom," as he might say in his UrbanAID PSA. If that image can stop just one couple from having unprotected sex, just one time, the promoters say, it's all good. HEATHER KEETS is doing all she can to learn about and spread the word on the dangers of the HIV virus and AIDS. Heather Keets, urban id 4 lifebeat. , YSB, 10-31-1995