A few weeks ago, my man Boyce Watkins dropped a provocative critique of Oprah Winfrey and her relationship with rappers. Yvonne Bynoe, author of Stand and Deliver: Political Activism, Leadership, and Hip Hop Culture, has responded to this critique with the following piece, which appears on the Alternet. According to Bynoe, Oprah has refused to bring Ice Cube and Ludacris on her show because of their “message of contempt for black women.”

Rapper Aren’t Feeling Oprah’s Love
By Yvonne Bynoe

Earlier this month Oprah responded to her critics, explaining to MTV: “I respect other people’s rights to do whatever they want to do in music and art. … I don’t want to be marginalized by music or any form of art. … I feel rap is a form of expression, as is jazz. I’m not opposed to rap. I’m opposed to being marginalized as a woman.”

In case Oprah’s comments need some decoding, what she’s saying is she believes rap artists should be free to record songs that call women “bitches” and “hos,” and she should be equally free not to invite them on her show. Oprah does not have a problem with rap music — she has a problem with rap that degrades women.

There’s a particular arrogance that permeates Ludacris, 50 Cent and Ice Cube’s statements, as if Oprah owes them a spot on her show. It’s Oprah who has issues by refusing to celebrate black men who’ve made millions by demeaning black women?

If songs such as Ludacris’ “Move Bitch” or NWA’s “A Bitch Iz A Bitch” are not Oprah’s cup of tea, then why should she be obligated to give them a platform? It doesn’t seem to occur to these black men (or their supporters) that Oprah has the right not to use her show — which is seen by 21 million viewers a week in 105 countries — to promote performers whose work she feels is misogynistic or offensive. Oprah may not be kicking any black feminist credentials, but rather than blindly using her influence to “help the brothers,” she is choosing not to support black entertainers whose work denies the humanity of black women.

For the rest of the story, click here. 

Last night, the Miami Heat pulled off a major upset by defeating Dallas in 6 and becoming only the third team in history to come back from a 2-0 deficit and win the trophy. Here’s why it happened:

• Dwayne Wade – Simply put, the Heat would not have one any games without Wade, whose all-world performance has catapulted him to full-fledged superstar status. Unlike many superstars, Wade was able to keep his teammates involved the entire game. When crunch time arrived, however, Wade was able to step up, take, and make every big shot that his team needed. From now on, expect the “Who’s the best player, Kobe or Lebron?” debates to include D-Wade.
• Antoine Walker – Although he still spends too much time behind the 3-point line tossing up prayers, Walker’s aggressive drives to the basket and decent defense forced Dallas to play more defense than they like.
• Alonzo Mourning – Despite his limited minutes, Zo’s stellar defense and still-strong post game gave Miami a much needed boost throughout the series. In fact, his shot blocking spree last night was a big reason why the series is over.
• Pat Riley – From the beginning of the season, Riley has been able to motivate his players and have them believe that they could win the championship despite the naysayers. When they were down 2-0 and on the edge of the cliff, he was able to keep his troops confident, patient, fully prepared to be champions.

In many ways, the Mavericks surprising loss to the Miami Heat (most national experts had the Mavs winning in 6) had less to do with Miami and more to do with Dallas. Here’s why Dallas lost:

• Game 3 trauma – The Mavs squandered a 13 point lead late in the game that would have effectively ended the Heat’s season. Dallas never seemed the same afterward, coughing up Game 5 in similar fashion and never regaining the swagger that helped them dominate the first two games.
• Crunch time play – Throughout the playoffs Dallas was 1-6 in games decided by 3 points or less. This is unacceptable for a championship team.
• No killer instinct – Unlike Miami, who smelled blood and pounced, Dallas allowed Miami’s mistakes to go unpunished. Take last night, for example. The Heat shot 2-for-18 on 3-ponters, missed 14 fouls shots, and had 19 turnovers. Who would’ve predicted that a road team could win a game with that type of performance?
• Dirk Nowitzki’s 4th quarter disappearing act – Although he finished with typically strong numbers (29 points and 15 rebounds), Dirk Diggler failed to demand the ball and deliver when his team needed him the most. This is the difference between a star and superstar.

As most of you know, the NBA Finals ended last night with the Miami Heat defeating the Dallas Mavericks in another hard fought contest. More importantly, my historic run of correct NBA predictions has come to a tragic end. Although the above post will focus on my breakdown of the game, this one is reserved for all the people (read: haters) who have been sending me “I Told You So” text messages and e-mails ever since the final buzzer sounded. Out of the kindness of my heart, I am reserving this post for all of the hecklers to talk trash while we decent folk discuss the game elsewhere.

Humbly,

The Management

“The prophet is without honor / In your own country people swear that you ain’t shit because they know ya momma” – Talib Kweli, “Let Me See” (Remix) w/ Morcheeba
In this line, Kweli draws from the Bible (Mark 6:4) and mixes it with ‘hood experience to drop science about the difficulties of being accepted at home for one’s achievements. I couldn’t agree more.

How many times have you heard someone say, “I knew that nigga since back in the day. He ain’t shit”?