, Big biz ...this years national hip hop convention is full of conviction, but then again it has to be. On june 16th also in what would be the 33rd birthday of Tupac Shakur, peeps not only from this country but also the world gathered and allied to further network and organize the hip hop nation. Through out the week Baye Adolfo Wilson and Angela Woodson had the news on blast that this was the year that hip hop was gonna be in command of its own capacities and further the discussion on how it was gonna demand that autonomy.

I think its cleartime that hip hop redefine its youth term stereotype. 25 years recorded rap, about 30 years as a sub-culture of black culture, certainly if one was 8 years of age hearing the debut of Rappers Delight in 1979,that person would be Tupacs age looking for a house for their spouse and 2.5 kids. Its easy for society to point at hip hip and ask wssup with the youth. The face of hip hop is older and wider, but the control and bottomline say so may as well be done through a ski-mask and prongs.

People ask me all the time about the youth vote. I answer that the 'youth' aint old enough to vote. Under 18 would be catagorized still officially as 'guardian necessary' in this country. But the zone of 18-40 year olds ..the demographic that reads this magazine are considered children of society. The collective power has been individualized. Much of hip hops voice and image is projected towards younger folks so a product can be hocked and sold, thus in this society other than the art of entertainment it can be rendered as powerless.

But real grown folks do real things. Activism raises the discussion on whether the people are fed, clothed, and housed. Those needs are envisioned by equality and reform in education, economics,environment ,enforcement opportunity. Talk is cheap but maybe not in rap, where when used best can point peeps in a right direction where they might get fed or learn to feed oneself.

Redefinition of the hip-hop nation would mean that it would point itself to older more mature minds, movements, and voices to use the culture as a connect to lead young people into understanding that youth is precious and much shorter termed than adulthood. It cannot exist being run on youthful energy alone, it must be guided. Theres no society i know of thats run from the young upwards. The learning of knowledge, wisdom, and understanding does not come a microwave, thus with these attributes the real youth can be led and raise to carry that energy into true adulthood. Peer groups niched to only to address their peers is always limited. Thus the culture needs to be open and unstereotypically addressing all ages and gender addressing upon the shortchanged needs of people, and mos(t) def(initely) (big pun intended) re-connecting the generations and closing the gaps.

Hip hop is now a worldwide recognized culture , and backwards USA foreign policy has put the entire earth at a serious crossroad. Now the question is, is it grown enough to speak to the masses beyond the party animal escapism it so conviently provides? We hope so , and more than hope, the Hip Hop National Convention gathered groups, activists,more importantly men,women, and youth to demand whats rightfully for the people and not the elite corporate agenda that hovers greedily over the masses.

To show that im stopping some of the sewage in certain focused situations yours truly will position certain situations dealing with the monsters of ClearChannel and even with the major labels. The key in what Prince did was in dealing in his own terms business to business not necessarily adhering to the standard pimp-ho mentality. Or plantation / owner- slave mentality

Moanin at midnight The life and times of Howlin Wolf Indeed one of my favorite artists ever... As ive carried this book all over ..check it out...Pantheon Books

At Inner City a great bright spot is Wendy WRECK Williams and we have some great conversations up there at WBLS. Hey, the deal is you keep your sht correct and she wont wreck you. Same with another cat STAR from STAR and Buckwild show ..his honesty is missed.

John Kerry still should'nt get it easy even though son of a bush is kicking himself in the mouth at every shot. His take on reparations (as in none) doesnt vibe well with me at all. Still again mr bush-kriegs stamp on the planet will look very ugly if he gets 4-mo. Ive been advising every american i run into to at least get a passport. 18% of all americans have one and its a no bling cost of just $90.

Yours truly and Flav did Hot 97 in NY Summer Jam with Alicia Keys in front of 50,000 Jersey Meadowlands heads alongside Doug E Fresh , Black Sheep, and Treach from Naughty By Nature it was a beautiful experience. Until the 50 Cent ..RKelly finishes which people felt that the mood flipped. It is so amazing how much attention outside of the music that grown ups listen to....

Ray Charles R.I.P and the point is that i was trying to make it my business to catch the founder of soul in concert last and this year. Especially after catching James Browns show last year... R&B ? There wouldn't be a speck without Mr Ray. I didnt hear enough respect thru urban radio.....a damn shame....they shoulda played his records every hour for a week until they rested him in the ground.

Frankly i dont remember anything great about Ronald Wilson Reagan. I remember Minister Farrakhan in an early 1980s speech brought out the number of characters in his name as in 6-6-6. My first year voting in 1980 i voted for Angela Davis for the communist party.

Im very glad to see my man Ken Griffey jr staying healthy. To me hes still the best player in the game,and i have a signed bat from him. He'll get 500 this weekend.

Speaking of sport, the Pistons had proven that the heart of a professional athlete cannot be underestimated. In fact many of them Laker fans who as Entertainers and musicians need to have some of that will installed in their game as well instead of being the predictible commodity for corporations.

R.I.P to a hero of mine for sure Mr Ralph Wiley author ,sportswriter,blacktivist...man. I had just done a ESPN show with Ralph, Jim Romes Show. We exchanged numbers and he was just telling me how great Florida was to him. A great loss. His 'What Black People Should Do Now' is a great guide and a reflection of the foundations of the renaissance 90s. Damn.

Mistachuck@rapstation.com