Rap is Freedom, pt. I

Here's the first half of a story that happened last night. Y'all gonna be hit wit' it in two pieces because I never learned to paraphrase. Part I:

Illogic of Definition

Last night I watched as my friend Evan shut down a rap concert and nearly started a brawl. The show was free, the last in a series at the Ohio State Hemp Fest 2007, an annual event on campus that doesn’t have any more of an excuse to exist other than to sell hip T-shirts and drug paraphernalia. The freeness of the concerts was a condition that lent into two theories. One implies that there is some sort of charity or sponsored act of good will at large, something that would require a degree of respect. Then there is the other side of the coin, which might say that we were not beholden to the folks on stage, and free to act in any manner we see fit. No contract barring any action. And that’s how we thought.

We arrived at the festival, sober as hall monitors, expecting to stay for a max of twenty minutes. The whole idea of throwing a Hemp Fest during the same month as the far more successful and notably more fun Community Fest made me a little uncomfortable, so I certainly didn’t want to stay long. Then Evan began one of his role-playing escapades, a game of sorts where he acts in a particular manner to purposefully misrepresent himself. He started to yell at the top of his lungs to anyone about anything. He shouted about how the ice at the lemonade stand was free, and how we should be more like ice. He harassed the burnt out t-shirt and accessories vendors with nonsensical bursts like,

“This is the biggest variety of sunglasses I’ve ever seen!”
“I’m going to cut my hair ten times tonight!”
“I’m going to get a hair cut and hair extensions at the same time!”

Yelling for the sake of yelling because we were alive and free and young. And on this freedom kick, we showed up to the last concert of the night, the rap group Definition featuring Ill Poetic, The Green Brothers, and the headlining MC, Illogic. A technically sound and proficient group of rappers, Definition was superficially enjoyable to see and hear. Nonetheless, Evan shouted on about freedom, haircuts, and ice, as Definition and Illogic spit rhymes about fakers, players, posers, and haters.

To be continued...

Visit these to get the whole picture:

Illogic's myspace

Ill Poetic's myspace

The Green Brothers myspace

www.doveink.com