In response to the recent rumors that they were involved in devil worship, Oscar award winning rap group Three 6 Mafia issued the following statement:

Man, we ain’t no devil worshippers, I mean how can you win an Oscar being a devil worshiper? I mean you know you probably win, win like a firecracker or something if you was a devil worshiper. You won’t win an Oscar.

Well. That settles that.

Since a few people critiqued me for not including women in my recent NCAA Tournament coverage, allow me to give a shout out to Duke for punishing Uconn once again.

Apparently, the beef industry that currently drives much of hip-hop has expanded into the world of R&B. RL from the popular 90’s group Next has released a diss record called “Hater In You” coming at 112, Destiny’s Child, and Jagged Edge. The song isn’t particularly vicious (or good), but it may spark a new trend in contemporary R&B where singers engage in lyrical warfare. What beefs would you like to see? Usher vs Omarion? Tyrese vs. Jaheim? Or maybe I just need to get some sleep.

Apparently, some people are reluctant to talk to authorities about the missing Milwaukee boys and the folks at CNN wanted to draw a connection to hip-hop’s “Stop Snitching” campaign. Around 6:00 pm, I got a call from CNN Headline News’ “Nancy Grace Show” asking me to discuss “Stop Snitching” in hip-hop. Over two phone calls, I attempted to explain the complexities of the movement as a response to wide range of moral and political issues. I tuned in to watch the show and found that, instead of doing the issue justice, they simply said that people aren’t talking to cops and hip-hop is the cause of it. They even showed pictures of Jay-Z, Shyne, and Lil’ Kim as examples of anti-snitching rappers. Worse, they conveyed this information on live television to the grandfather of these poor boys, who was clearly disturbed by it. I’m really disappointed, but certainly not surprised, by this irresponsible journalism.

As many of you know, two Black boys from Milwaukee are currently missing. Quadrevion Henning, 12, and Purvis Virginia Parker, 11, were last seen around 3:30 p.m. March 19, when they asked Henning’s grandfather whether they could play basketball at a nearby park. Police are beginning to suspect criminal activity and are looking for help from area residents.

Unfortunatey, the national media rarely does a good job reporting missing Black people. Remember Latoya Figueroa (R.I.P.), whose story didn’t reach the national media until much later than her white counterparts? As someone who knew Latoya, I was particularly disturbed by the media’s racist response. As such, it’s critical that we continue to discuss this current tragedy and pass on any relevant information to the appropriate authorities.