Dizzee Rascal Obama Chat Sparks Debate Over Racism

(swiped from Pitchfork Media)

Shortly after Barack Obama won the U.S. presidential election, Dizzee Rascal checked in via satellite for a chat with television presenter Jeremy Paxman on the BBC program "Newsnight". The topic, not so surprisingly, was race, one the BBC's U.S. press counterparts were addressing in earnest at the time as well, given the milestone nature of Obama's victory.

It could have been another enlightening conversation on a subject on the minds of many, but as noted in a recent report in The Guardian, plenty of folks are none too happy about the way the Paxman chat played out.

Paxman has drawn criticism for being "patronising," "crass," and, as a separate Guardian TV & Radio Blog post puts it, "condescending." In particular, his decision to ask Dizzee Rascal "Do you feel yourself to be British?" has raised eyebrows, as some feel the same question would never have been asked of a white musician. Further complicating that point is a statement in the Guardian story from a BBC spokesperson, which suggests Paxman's question followed a comment about "Britishness" from former House of Lords leader Baroness Amos, who was also part of the chat. That comment appears in the interview transcript The Guardian has published, but not in the video of the program that's making the rounds (see below).

Dizzee's seen his share of flak as well, from other rappers and citizens who feel he misrepresented black and/or hip-hop culture, and from some 50 viewers who, The Guardian notes, wrote in to the BBC to question the rapper's "suitability as a guest on [a] special...watched by 1.4 million people." Judge for yourself in the video below, but frankly I find it hard to slight Dizzee for basically being himself, even if he was sometimes tangled up by the semantics and some of Paxman's dodgier questions (How exactly is one meant to respond to "Do you believe in political parties in Britain?" anyway?). Have a look:



Dizzee's UK label XL has no comment on the matter, and notes that Dizzee himself is not available for comment. He may well be off gearing up for a short UK jaunt that kicks off this weekend, or prepping for the arena-sized audiences he'll face when he opens for the Prodigy in April of next year.

Dizzee Rascal:

11-15 Glasgow, Scotland - ABC
11-17 Norwich, England - UEA
11-18 Southampton, England - Guildhall
11-19 Leeds, England - Academy
11-20 Lincoln, England - The Engine Shed
11-22 London, England - Forum
04-05 Cardiff, Wales - International Arena *
04-06 Newcastle, England - Arena *
04-07 Glasgow, Scotland - SECC Hall *
04-09 Birmingham, England - NIA *
04-10 Manchester, England - MEN Arena *
04-11 Nottingham, England - Arena *
04-13 Sheffield, England - Arena *
04-14 Brighton, England - Brighton Centre *
04-17 London, England - Wembley Arena *

* with the Prodigy

• Video: Dizzee Rascal: Pussyole (Old Skool) [from the Maths & English LP]

Video: Obama's Acceptance Speech and McCain's Concession Speech

McCain's Concession:



Obama's Acceptance:

AMERICA....YOUR DREAMS HAVE NOW BEEN FULFILLED

I'm so proud. I'm proud of Obama and his family, same goes for Biden and his family, and most importantly, I'm proud of America.

McCain: Out Of Touch?

According to Reuters:

"Stocks plummeted for a seventh straight session on Thursday as investors bet recent moves by authorities worldwide to thaw frozen credit markets would not be enough to avert a global recession.

An avalanche of selling at the close left the Dow below 8,600 for the first time since May 2003. The Nasdaq and the S&P 500 each also fell to levels not seen in more than five years."

And What's McCain talking about?

Republican presidential nominee John McCain questioned whether Democrat Barack Obama is "telling the truth" about his ties to a former left-wing radical on Thursday as he tried to raise doubts about Obama's character.

His goal was to tie Obama to William Ayers, a founding member of the Weather Underground, a radical left anti-Vietnam War group that bombed the U.S. Capitol in 1971 and the Pentagon in 1972. He spent 10 years as a fugitive and his ex-radical wife Bernardine Dohrn, spent time on the FBI's Most Wanted list.

"We don't care about an old washed-up terrorist and his wife," McCain said. "That's not the point here. The point is Sen. Obama said he was just a guy in the neighborhood. We know that's not true. We need to know the full extent of the relationship because of whether Sen. Obama is telling the truth to the American people or not."

"The issue is Barack Obama's judgment and candor," the announcer in the ad says. "When Obama just says, 'This is a guy who lives in my neighborhood,' Americans say, 'Where's the truth, Barack?' Barack Obama. Too risky for America."

Point being: McCain is fuckin' up! (C) Dave Chappelle

This is not an endorsement for any candidate. I just wanted to shed a little light on some truth, calling an ace like I see it.

Game Slams Jesse Jackson -- Twice -- On New Tracks With Lil Wayne, Nas

(swiped from MTV News)

MC also challenges Jay-Z, G-Unit (again) on tracks from forthcoming LP.

"It's a hundred different messages you can take from the song," Game said on Monday afternoon, cruising through Houston on his way to a radio station. "It's called 'My Life,' so tune in." The video for the song, from his forthcoming LP L.A.X.,premieres on "FNMTV" Friday (starting at 8 p.m. ET).

"And I ain't no preacher, but here's my Erick Sermon," he raps on the record. "So eat this black music, and tell me how it tastes now/ And f--- Jesse Jackson 'cause it ain't about race now."

Later he adds "Walk through the gates of hell, see my Impala parked in front with the high beams on/ Me and the devil sharin' chronic blunts/ Listening to The Chronic album/ Playin' backwards, shootin' at pictures of Don Imus for target practice."

It's very provocative — and he goes after Jackson even harder on a different track from the album, "Letter to the King," that leaked on Thursday (August 14).

The song — a duet with Nas — has bars that are lyrically astonishing, and will probably be the pair's most talked-about collaboration yet. Of course, the "King" the duo refers to is Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. At times, the two talk directly to the late civil-rights leader as if he were still alive; at others, they ponder aloud about what could have been.

"If Dr. King marched today, would Bill Gates march?" Game raps on the third verse. "I know Obama would, but would Hillary take part?/ I feel the pain of Nelson Mandela/ 'Cause when it rains it pours, I need Rihanna's umbrella/ For Coretta Scott [King's] teardrops/ When she got the phone call that the future just took a f---ing headshot."

If you don't remember anything else about the song, Game's controversial last line will stay with you.

"I wonder why Jesse Jackson ain't catch him before his body dropped," he asks. "Would he give me the answer?/ Probably not."

At press time, Game had not responded to MTV News' requests for comment on why he's going after Jackson — a longtime King associate, who was present at his assassination in 1968 — so hard, but he did speak with us at length about L.A.X. in Houston earlier this week.

Several other noteworthy tracks from the album hit the Net on Thursday (August 14), including "Angel," which features classic name-dropping from an outspoken Game while Common guest-drops metaphors. There's also a song called "Ya Heard" that features the Compton track-slayer engaging in some rap repartee with Ludacris.

Game described the album as "just me taking flight, man. This album is gonna be real special — from beginning to end, it's gonna knock."

Recently on KISS-FM in Phoenix, Game admitted that he's a fan of Jay's music, but predicted that a battle between the two of them would be one-sided — against Jigga.

"I'm young, stupid, disrespectful," Game said. "I haven't lost a beef. I killed a whole group limb by limb — see what happened to G-Unit."

Speaking of the Unit, estranged group member Young Buck appears in the video for "My Life," which also co-stars Lil Wayne.

"Buck is in the video for a split second, robbing the liquor store!" Game smiled. "Lil Wayne came out to California — he re-routed his tour bus, made a U-turn for me, [so we could] shoot the video. I think the video is gonna do some great things."

L.A.X. is due on August 26.