A Few Loose Ends and A Few More Ties

That title doesn't look nearly as witty or punny now that I've actually written it out, but it at least does the job of telling you exactly what this post is about. As some of you may have figured out, this is not the post that was promised when I put up that picture of Colin Powell for the sneak peak. The answer for that by the way was Black Republican. This next one was originally supposed to be a comparison of select albums in the discographies of Jay-Z and Nas. I'm still working on that one but it's taking much longer than originally anticipated to finish listening to their massive amount of collective work and I didn't want to wait until I finished to write something.


And so, here we are. This post serves as a way to look back and recognize areas in previous articles where I could have done things differently. In essence, it's a reflection piece and during the time it took to ponder the contents of it, I've finally come to a conclusion as to what this blog's purpose is. I would like to say that I write these massive walls of texts about miscellaneous interests of mine for you, the reader, but that's not entirely true, mostly because the majority of you three couldn't care less about the subjects of my blog. Ultimately, I write this blog because I love it. At heart, I'm still a liberal arts student and this blog provides the perfect outlet to spit out all of my thoughts on pretty much anything. It helps that there are some people who read and comment on it whether online or in person, sure. However, even if this blog existed in a void unto itself, I would still continue to write. As for why I waste my time writing about actual topics instead of just posting a few pictures and writing some self important dribble about my own life... I mean, I doused my Xanga in gasoline and lit that shit on fire back in the dark 00s decade and there's no way I'm letting this revert to that.

Now, that isn't to say that I'm a good writer. In fact, the more articles I write, the more I realize how flawed my writing style is. That's why, after every post is made public, I read the finished product over and over for the next few days and with every read, I find places where I've made mistakes or just could have improved on. Most of these are small grammatical errors that I fix on the spot but some deal with the subjects of the post and many times, I'll come up with an idea or change my mind about something weeks after I've already published. Since it seems ridiculous to go in and edit whole parts of past posts just to accommodate for these realizations, I decided to just take note of them and every once in a while do something like this to unleash them at once. Well, enough with the intro right?

Post 1: If Rappers Were Ballers, NBA Ballers

I really, really like this first post. It the funnest article from beginning to end for me to work on and it serves as a prime example of why this blog exists. I also stand by all of my comparisons and so this little editorial isn't so much a counterpoint, but an alternate NBA star one rapper could have received. It's hard because the rapper in question, Kanye West, really does share many similarities with Kobe Bryant, the original match. But the more I think about it, the more I wish I at least should have mentioned that Kanye is also the hip hop world's Russell Westbrook (much more so than my original choice, Schoolboy Q. Long live TDE!!). They're both the result of absolute passion for their craft and the energy each brings to their respective stage is unparalleled. No other basketball player is as dissected as Russell Westbrook, just as no other rapper is under as much constant scrutiny as Kanye. People are quick to criticize them  and throw them under the bus for their slip ups but even quicker to jump back on the band wagon when they inevitably blow our minds again soon after. Westbrook is probably the most polarizing star in the NBA right now, and if Kanye West isn't the hip hop version of that, I don't know who is. Finally, of course, we can't end this discussion without mentioning their crazy, weird, often kind of wack but always out there fashion sense.

That time he auditioned for the part of Frodo Baggins

That time he auditioned for Blades of Glory

Also, West.... Westbrook?? Boom. Mind blown. Case closed. Why can't life always be this easy?

Post 2: The 12 Beers of Christmas

Really the only thing I would have done differently here is forgo the number 12 and done a massive winter beer taste-off 64 seed tournament style. Yes, I know 12 was the perfect number because Christmas and yes, consuming 64 beers may or may not have killed all members of beer club. But you have to agree that the resulting post would have been nothing short of epic.

Artistic rendition of hypothetical, epic blogpost.

Post 3: That One About Music

Probably the one that I mull over the most, due to my wanting to change the order every other week. For example, if I were to write this today, the Big KRIT album would be 2 spots higher and JMSN's album would be about 2-3 spots lower. Alas, such is the mercurial nature of ranking albums and if I were to address every position change, we'd be here forever. Still, there are three aspects of the article that I do wish I could have done differently. The first is I would have Mick Jenkin's incredible mixtape The Water[s] on the list, probably somewhere in the 12-5 range. That would of course knock down Jessie Ware's album to honorable mention status and while that's quite regrettable, The Water[s] is just too good. Even if it somehow didn't have Jazz, a definite top 5 single of the past year, it would have turned heads, but with it, there's no question this mixtape belongs to hang with the best. Just, listen for yourself. I'll wait.

The second thing I'd do differently if I were to rewrite this would be to take out Hands Up as a best track on Hell Can Wait and replace it with Fire. The opening line, while not a sentiment I necessarily agree with, is, from a strictly hip hop point of view, one of the sickest first lines every put to wax for a song, let alone an album. I mean, "School couldn't get me into heaven. And heaven couldn't get me in a bitch bed." Along with the way the beat builds up and truly kicks in right there, it's absolute musical crack and sets the tone for the entire project.

The third and last amendment is also a change of best track, this time swapping out Underground Kings for Wishin on PRhyme. Underground Kings is a great track but once my mind stopped seizing from the shock of seeing Q (long live TDE!) and Killer Mike on a DJ Premier track, I came back to my proper senses and started giving Wishin its proper due. The instrumental itself is pretty sick, switching up with the flow of the artist rhyming at the moment. As for the actual rapping, Royce and Common both rap their respective asses the hell off, with Royce paying homage to a few older, classic verses from other artists who have been blessed by Preem's production before. It's songs like this that really reminds you of why you fell in love with this genre in the first place.

Post 4: 8 Ties That You Should Own

Ok, I lied. This was the most fun I had writing on this blog, especially the opening paragraphs in which I got to bash my childhood decisions. It's probably the closest thing to a perfect article as I'll ever write and as such, I have nothing I would like to change. Instead, I'll close out by adding to it with 3 bonus ties. These ties aren't necessarily essentials like the previous 8 were, but if you're going expand beyond the basics, any of the three will be a good place to start.

9. The Plaid Tie

Shirt: J. Crew; Tie: Frank and Oak; Clip: Banana Republic

A wool, plaid tie is a thing of great beauty, especially worn on a blisteringly cold, snowy day. It makes for a great contrast to solid shirts and something about it just looks classy as hell. Even if you already have a winter tie, do yourself a favor and pick on of these up as well.

10. The Red Tie

Shirt, Tie and Clip: J. Crew

As I said before, other than black, blue is downright essential because of the color's ridiculous versatility. After that though, the next color you should be thinking of is red. The easiest way to go about this would be to buy one of the essential ties in this color, ie. the stripe tie in the picture above. Although red may not be as easy to match as blue or black, the color catches the eye and is great for bringing dead outfits back to life.

11. The Flower Tie

Shirt: Bonobos; Tie: J. Crew

Girls like flowers. Therefore, boys buy flower ties and hope the transitive property applies here.


I know. This article had no real structure whatsoever and served just about as little purpose. That would more or less make this my blog's version of the alternate TV channels episode of Rick and Morty and contrary to most people's opinion, I thought that episode was the tits. So in the end, I suppose this post didn't end up being the complete disaster I envisioned after all. Anyways, thanks as always, my three loyal readers.