DudeFresh's 2016 End of the Year Grief Counseling

      Welcome to In the Mix’s 2016 Grief Counseling with DudeFresh! We’re so happy that you could make it out here today. Last year’s year in review post was an extravaganza. This year’s is grief counseling. We say that because most would agree that this was a tough year for everyone. But honestly, people say that about every year. Every year sucks for everyone. During late December, people look back on the year and think about how they’ve been backstabbed, mistreated, put through the wringer, etc. As if for 365 days life has been relentlessly roundhouse kicking them in the gut and they haven’t had the sense to dodge it or at least tighten their abdominals. Everyone goes into the new year saying that they are going to put themselves first when really, they weren’t that selfless in the first place. I think my New Year’s resolution this year might be to count up how many “New Year, New Me” captions I see on Instagram or Facebook. People make it seem that once the clock strikes 12, and 2017 rings in the new year, all their problems will go away. I’m not saying it isn’t possible for someone to have a bad year, it’s just not likely that 99% of the country went through hell and back and need to have a pity party about it. We aren’t trying to be insensitive, we’re just realistic.

To kick things off, here’s a poem that accurately encapsulates everything that happened this year.

Harambe’s Haiku

Dead gorilla tweets,

A nation obsessed with memes,

Juju on that beat



      This year saw a lot of change happen to the two of us. The most visible is we both put our playboy tophats on the rack and entered loving relationships with our respective girlfriends. I got accepted into NYU but ultimately decided not to go. Eddie went to Chicago and met up with Dwyane Wade to discuss their upcoming line of Stance socks. And we released “Buckets” which went double platinum and has three Grammy nominations, including best rap video. Fingers crossed for February 12, 2017. We also celebrated the anniversary of Thirst Responsibly, our pride and joy. The quest to get it published is still underway. so stay tuned for that.

But enough about us, let’s go on with the counseling!

Things That Need to be Left in 2016

      Twitter f*ckery-- Starting with “don’t @ me.” This is a phrase that immediately follows after an incredibly stupid, offensive or controversial statement. We don’t know if this started in 2016, but it can stay there. You know that phrase "if you don’t have anything nice to say, don’t say it all?" Well, for 2017 the new saying is “if you don’t want people to argue with you, keep it to yourself.”

     Let’s be real here, it’s the internet. It’s where beefs often get started and beefs get ended. If you really can’t handle a debate, then don’t put yourself in that situation. I get it, sometimes things get a little bit too intense than what you wanted, but this “don’t @ me” business is about the softest way to go about life. You don’t walk into a motorcycle bar, say “Bikes are overrated and stupid, don’t @ me” and not expect to be confronted. You’re putting yourself in that situation.

     Meme Culture-- Hey, Meme Team, can you chill? Everyone loves a good laugh, but nothing’s worse than a joke being overdone. The 3-1 lead jokes, Harambe jokes, J. Cole going double platinum with no features jokes, they’ve become stale. And if it’s not that it’s someone using still images from cartoon shows and giving them ratchet captions or rap song lyrics. Case in point, the Arthur memes. And if it isn’t THAT it’s some new phenomenon that gets it’s own Twitter account. Case in point, the penguin wife from Nat Geo.

     The internet is undefeated, yeah yeah, we get it. My question is how long are we going to continue laughing at similar variations of the same spectacle? What’s worse is that it’s permeating into rap music. It seems like rap songs gain more popularity, not from exposure, but from memification and Twitter trends. The latest case of this is Migo’s “Bad and Boujee.” After the rain drop lyric became a trending joke, the sales, streams, etc. for the song skyrocketed. Just look at “Black Beatles.” You cannot deny that the mannequin challenge had a tremendous influence on the song becoming a #1 hit. I have no problem with hip hop transcending demographics and markets, but when it’s done disingenuously it makes the culture look like a cheap gimmick.

      Dude here, as much as you want it to stay in 2016, Deion, that baby is coming along for the ride in 2017 and I don’t see it slowing down anytime soon. I agree with you in that some of the memes need to stop. Just today I saw a Facebook comment stating that the Warriors blew a 3-1 lead jokes need to stay in 2016. They honestly do, especially considering how many teams blew a 3-1 lead in 2016. Some memes; however, aren’t bad and I enjoy them. I’d be a damn liar if I said the Kermit to Kermit memes, or whatever they’re called, hadn’t made me laugh a good amount of times. Meme culture is here to stay, but it could desperately use a spring cleaning.

      Hover Boards--I’m gonna keep this quick, hover boards can and need to stay in 2016. I don’t need people rolling through my campus on their hoverboards anymore because they can’t stand the struggle of walking place to place. Hoverboards reached the peak of laziness in 2016. Let that stay in the past.

      Listicals-- Nothing says fast food journalism more than a title like “11 things you should do on the first date” or “12 reasons why your dog licks himself.” As a writer, listicals make me cringe. Mainly because of the way they are written. There are plenty of well written listicals out there. But the majority of listicals are these easy to read blurbs that don’t even attempt to scratch beyond the surface of what’s being discussed. Instead they make sweeping generalizations and weak jokes. Keep em in 2016.

      Jenner Journalism-- Ever since Snapchat got that discover page, I have seen a headline about Kylie and/or a Kardashian every single day. It’s sad to know that there are people who make their living reporting on a 19 year old girl getting fast food at a drive thru with her boyfriend. That’s more depressing than the people who jump to read it because the people who wrote it probably have degrees. They went to college not knowing that their degree will lead them to a staff position where they will report the daily minutiae of a girl who was probably in elementary school at the time. In 2017, I don’t want to see a headline about Kylie taking a selfie or a belfie. I pray that belfie (short for “butt selfie”) doesn’t catch on. If I want to see what Kylie is up to, I can follow her social media accounts and turn on the push notifications.

       As Deion just said, the discover page is filled with updates on the Jenner and Kardashian family. I never watched Keeping Up with the Kardashians, nor have I ever watched the updates that Snapchat so desperately thinks I need. I don’t care if Kylie “shows off her curves in her newest bikini.” Nor do I care whether or not I think she photoshopped her “belfie.” To be frank, the only reason I would keep up with any of the Jenner or Kardashian family is to see what’s going on with Kanye. But besides that, there’s no reason to have daily updates on their life. The only interesting moment where they deserved to be on the discover page was when Kim did the Taylor Swift Expose Party. For the sake of this blog, I literally went onto my Snapchat’s discover page to see if there was something on Kim or Kylie. Today’s headline? “What It’s really Like to Wear Kim’s Latex Dress?” Smh. Cosmopolitan can stay in 2016.

In the Mix's 2016 Hip Hop Awards

Disclaimer: I’m not a huge fan of Childish Gambino/Donald Glover. I am aware that he had a critically acclaimed album and highly successful show this year. Unfortunately that’s as far as my knowledge goes on the subject.   

      It’s become increasingly difficult to write about current rap music because there’s simply too many titles and not enough time. Once I stop procrastinating and finally get this Apple Music free trial, I’m gonna put it to work. Until then, here’s who and what stuck out to me this year in hip hop.

Beatdrop of the Year-- Father Stretch My Hands Pt.1

      Kanye knighted Metro Boomin as the DJ Premier of this generation. This is a big honor and well deserved. If not for his beats, Metro Boomin should be remembered for having the greatest producer tags of all-time. The “If Young Metro Don’t Trust You” thing took on a life of it’s own, especially during the election. That tag helped make “Father Stretch My Hands Pt. 1” one of the biggest bangers of the year. I firmly believe this song could’ve been a #1 Billboard hit if it weren’t for the first lines in Kanye’s verse. The beatdrop alone should be reserved by the National Registry. And I will always remember the Vine of Cudi and Kanye jamming out to it during the Yeezy Season 3 show.  

MVP

      Lil Chano from 79th had the best year of any rapper for one reason: he’s doing it all without a label. SNL... no label, the Espys... no label, Ultralight Beams... no label, the Kit Kat commercial...no label. He’s easily one of the best lyricists in the game right now. With any given verse he can masterfully make bible allusions, pop culture references and go over listener's heads with wordplay and entendres. And he can do this while serious or playful. At 23, Chance has left his mark on hip hop and he’s still got some ideas that we gotta see. For everything that he’s done in and out of music he’s milly rocking and scooping the MVP award in his lap for 2016.  

Most Likely to Make You Cringe at his Success

      Drake must be stopped. Jay-Z said it best “Numbers don’t lie, check the scoreboard.” Drake coincidentally responded in saying “they don’t even want to look up at the score.” I love Drake. He’s my third favorite rapper of all-time. But he must be stopped. I’m tired of the sneak dissing, the cryptic pictures on IG, the culture vulturing, the light skinned tendencies, it’s enough. It’s in the best interest of hip hop that be taken out. Views was a very successful album and I'm sure More Life will be too. Forget about the classic album debate, this guy has yet to have a legitimate adversary. He either runs away (Kendrick Lamar), or sneak disses rappers he knows he can easily beat (Common, Tyga, Meek Mill, Joe Budden). Say a name, Drake. Man up. He’s an opportunist and his movements are very calculated, it’s time for a slip up. I don’t want to see him steadily fall off. I need for him to get exposed. I’m looking at you, Kendrick Lamar.

Most likely to Go Under the Radar

      With this Apple Music free trial I’m going to listen to all of the music in A$AP Rocky’s catalog. He was offended after a chart of rappers went viral and his name was listed under the overrated category.

      I don’t think Rocky is overrated, I don’t know what his current rating is. In 2017 I will do the necessary research because I’m disappointed that Rocky didn’t blow up as much as i thought he would. “F**kin Problems” is his most successful song and it’s three years old and star studded. He’s more than capable of topping that by himself. This year he and the A$AP Mob released new music every wednesday as part of a program titled Wavy Wednesday and nobody gave a damn. I don’t get it. Is Rocky hot or lukewarm? Has he already reached the pinnacle of success? I’ll find out the answers to this question and more in 2017.

Biggest Potential

If people care to hear what more he has to say other than “Caroline” they won’t be disappointed.

      Sidenote: MTV2’s list sucks
MTV2 resurrected it’s Hottest MC’s in the Game list. They should’ve kept it dead. Not only was the list boo boo, the people behind it were questionably irrelevant. I didn’t see the special when it aired, but I read an article from Billboard.com about it and stumbled across this sentence

“This year's panel featured a mixed bag of critics ranging from bloggers and personalities like Power 105.1's Charlamagne Tha God and Karen Civil to veteran rappers like Joe Budden and Nick Cannon.”

      Anyone who is published saying Nick Cannon is a veteran rapper is either trolling or begging to be fired.

So here’s my list of the hottest MC’s in the game this year with minimal explanation.

1. Chance the Rapper
2. Drake
3. Kanye West
4. Atlanta
5. Kodak Black

      Kanye won 2016 with TLOP, his numerous features and successful clothing line and tour. He won it a long time ago for me after he went off on Wiz Khalifa on Twitter. That was one of the best days of my life. At the same time he also lost 2016 because of his more eccentric than normal antics which put him in a negative spotlight towards the end of the year. Gucci got out so Atlanta automatically deserves a spot on the list. Not to mention Migos, Lil Yachty, 21 Savage and Young Thug had impressive years. Once again, Atlanta remains the epicenter of hip hop. Kodak is #5 because he’s making waves and garnered the attention of many. I won’t so any more because I’ve already gotten in enough trouble for talking about him.  

Sports Talk with ThatDude

Jose Fernandez’s Death
      I haven’t felt so personally touched by death than when the tragedy of September 25th occurred. I remember waking up in the morning, walking over to my phone and seeing a barrage of ESPN updates. In the midst of all those updates was a text from one of my good friends simply reading “Bro…” I feared to read what the updates were talking about, and when I finally did, I broke down crying. It was an emotional day for many people, losing a young star not even at the prime of his career. His smile and contagious energy will be missed. Fernandez, a young man who risked his life 3 times to get to the United States, was the heartbeat of Miami, a city filled with people of Cuban descent. The circumstances of his tragedy is disappointing as it appears he had been drinking, in addition to the usage of cocaine, but his death will remain a story of a star taken from the game at too young of a age. RIP Jose Fernandez.

No Lead is Safe
      This was the year that I learned that the TOUGHEST game in any sport is the closeout game. 2016 was the year of “*Insert Team Name Here* Blew a 3-1 Lead” It all started with the Thunder. They had a 3-1 lead on the (former) Defending World Champs, and best regular season record holding Golden State Warriors. All they needed was 1 more. I was pretty confident they would get it, Deion, on the other hand, was sure they would blow it. After he saw KD and the Thunder blow their regular season matchup against the Warriors, where Curry hit that dagger 3 from way down town, he knew the Thunder weren’t real. As we soon found out, Deion was correct, the Thunder blew a 3-1 lead, and in a couple months, KD would leave because he’s also not real. Next came the Warriors. I don’t have much to say about this one, any Facebook comment nowadays is “Don’t let this distract you from the fact that the Warriors blew a 3-1 lead.” Finally, switching to a different sport entirely, the Cleveland Indians decided to hop on the bandwagon of being unable to seal the deal. They had the Billy Goat cursed Cubs on the ropes, one more punch would have been the knockout blow. But 2016 showed that’s the hardest punch to give, and the Cubs came roaring back to create one of the best 7 game series seen in some time, in addition to a fairy tale ending that a team waiting 108 years for deserved.

World Champs

I just want to give a quick congratulations to the likes of Cleveland Cavaliers, Denver Broncos, and Chicago Cubs, who all did what said teams above couldn’t, and sealed a deal. Each of you were champs in your respective sport and that’s no small feat. The fact that the Broncos aren’t even making the playoffs in the subsequent season shows just how hard it is to be dominant. Speaking of dominance, Alabama, my goodness. They won the National Championship in 2016, and they are by far the best team in this year’s college football playoff. Whether they win it this year or not is to be seen, but they have defined dominance these past years. So, just as any good fans of a sport do with a dominant team, it’s time to root against them and pray that the upset happens. Go Huskies!

Kevin Durant to the Warriors

      Kevin Durant showed his true colors this offseason when he traded in his Thunder Blue for Golden State (piss) yellow. Durant took the definition of “if you can’t beat them, join them” literally. Now, when Durant loses in the finals once again, he doesn’t have to fall into his mother’s arms crying…this time he can fall right into Curry’s lap sobbing. I’m not even talking about Stephen Curry, he’s crying into Riley’s when it’s all said and done. Westbrook, on the other hand, put his big boy pants on, signed an extension and is doing everything for his team to get them back to the top (Note: Everything for his team is not an understatement). It won’t be this year, but Westbrook gave Durant a middle finger and said “trust the process.” I hope the day comes where Westbrook can Instagram a picture of his ring and tag a ring less Durant, and it’ll happen, because Westbrook is the king of petty.

Dwyane Wade Leaves the Heat for Chicago Winters and Bulls

Probably more shocking that Durant joining the Warriors was Wade leaving the Miami Heat for his hometown Chicago Bulls. I never thought I’d see the day where a team name other than “Heat” was spelled across his chest. And to leave the warmth of Miami in the winter for those negative temperatures in Chicago, Wade must have felt strong in his decision. The whole Shaq retirement ceremony with the Heat even got a little awkward at times because of his departure. Felt like Shaq and Riley were doing everything in their power to not mention Wade, but they had to. It seemed as if Wade was an ex-girlfriend and Miami was trying to move on and any mention of his name would trigger them. At the same time, It’s nice to see Wade playing for Chicago, I assume it’s something childhood Wade always dreamed of. Not many people get to live out their childhood dream and he is.

Notable Deaths in Sports 2016
• Muhammed Ali
• Arnold Palmer
• Craig Sager
• Jose Fernandez
• Pat Summit
• Pearl Washington

Deion at the Movies

      Okay, so I didn't really watch a lot of movies this year. I'm sure I missed a lot but that's what Redbox and Netflix are for. One thing I did see that was movie related is the Oscars. I was a little disappointed to see Leonardo DiCaprio win Best Actor. Not because I don't think he deserved it, any man who lives inside a carcass for work related purposes deserves to win at least employee of the month and a company parking spot, I just wanted him to go on without having one. Anyways, what made the Oscars so great was the genius that is Chris Rock hosted it and there were no black nominees in any category. It couldn't have been a better situation for him to be in. In his opening monologue he addressed racial and gender equality in showbiz. One of the most interesting points he raised was there being a category for best actor and one for best actress when acting isn't and shouldn't be gender exclusive. It didn't best his hosting of the BET Awards in 2014, but it was still great stuff. 

J. Cole and False Prophets

      J. Cole’s got a brand new set of balls. Since revealing yesterday that he’ll be dropping another album on the 9^th, two singles with accompanying music videos were released. The songs “Everybody Dies” and “False Prophets (Be Like This)” were among the top 5 trending topics on Twitter since they came out this morning. “False Prophets (Be Like This)” was the most popular of the two due to speculation of the song addressing two rappers in particular.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QNsgIBgpuGQ

      In the first verse Cole talks about a rapper who used to be his hero but he’s currently falling from grace and it’s hard to watch. This is no doubt about Kanye West who’s been in the headlines for all the wrong reasons lately. The lyrics point to it:

“Ego in charge of every move he’s a star”

“Falling apart, but we deny it/ Justifying the half-ass sh*t he dropped, we always buy it”

 “The world’s eggin him on, I’m beggin him to stop/ and playin his old sh*t knowing he won’t top it”

      We’re not going to get into the second verse which is supposedly aimed at Wale. I agree with pretty much everything Cole said in that. Let’s get to why J. Cole was dead wrong for that first verse.

      First of all, where does J. Cole get off by bad disrespecting the greatest artist of this generation? I get that he said Kanye was his hero and all, but he made Kanye out to be another phony in the industry that J. Cole has figured out. Strike 1... He said Kanye was falling apart. Strike 2... He called TLOP half assed...Strike 3... He called Ye out for having ghostwriters. There’s a difference between expressing concern and exposing somebody. J. Cole was trying to expose Kanye and I said “trying” because he revealed things that we already knew. We know Kanye has an ego; we know he has yes men around him and uses ghostwriters. This is nothing new. The tone and overall way these things were said is what makes it all so disrespectful. Regardless of whether what Cole said was the truth, the way he did it was inappropriate. You think J. Cole would say something like that about Nas? Remember how sheepishly he called him out for “You Owe Me” on “Let Nas Down” If he came at Nas the way he came at Kanye, do you think Nas would’ve responded with “Made Nas Proud” Hell no. 

      Respect your O.G.’s That goes for Drake too. I’m sorry for getting sidetracked, but I have to address this issue too. Drake is not and will not ever be in a position to exchange jabs with Jay-Z. Jay-Z is one of the greatest of all-time and Drake doesn’t even have a classic album. Jay did him a favor when he featured in “Light Up” and gave him advice on the industry. He blessed him again with that scene stealing feature on “Pound Cake.” Then Drake went and ran his mouth talking about how Jay can’t go a verse without mentioning his art collection? Then he wanted to pop off talking about some “I used to want to be on Roc-a-Fella then I turned into Jay.” Take it easy. He’s doing big numbers and all but the O.G.’s and the barbershop regulars don’t all respect him. This whole thing about idols becoming your rivals treads a thin line between confidence and disrespect. It’s one thing for the student to get to the point where he can challenge the master, but the respect must never be compromised. Now back to Cole.

      Check the resumes. Despite where Kanye is at right now, his career and impact in the world eclipses J. Cole’s by a whopping margin. J. Cole’s path was paved thanks to Kanye. There would’ve been no Come Up if it weren’t for College Dropout. The first time I and many of us even heard of J. Cole was in Kanye’s song “Looking for Trouble.” Cole even thanked Kanye on the credits of Cole World: The Sideline Story for allowing him to be featured on it.

      The bottom line is –If he is your O.G. and helped put you on, watch how you speak on his name. Unless you yourself were attacked, don’t say anything worthy of starting a beef.

      Now let’s talk about Kanye, people say he’s has fallen off. I think “fallen off” is a bit harsh. Has he gone off the handle? Yes, but this guy is going through something right now. The lengthy rants, which he called visionary streams of consciousness, are nothing new. They’re more aggressive than normal and the Sacramento walk out was bizarre and pretty terrible. I can’t defend what he did there. But keep in mind that he’s coming from a place of frustration and paranoia. His wife and kids could’ve been killed and he wouldn’t have been able to do anything about it. He’s blackballed by the same industries he’s influenced. He’s proven to be a genius yet few want to invest in him. He’s been considered a crazy egomaniac by millions for many years and the people he’s fought for don’t even support him. That’s gotta hurt the most. Imagine being willing to go to war for somebody but they won’t even pick you up when you’re wounded. I’m looking at you, Beyoncé and Jay-Z. Kid Cudi, his semi-protégé, called him out and that affected Kanye as well. And he’s dealt with all of this while on tour. It builds up. Nobody would be able handle these things and still be who they once were. As we can see from his admittance to the hospital this stuff if affecting Yes health so of course it’s going to affect his work. 

  

      I’m not mad at J. Cole for saying what he said in “False Prophets (Be Like This).” I just believe this is not what Kanye needs to hear and it’s not for someone like J. Cole to say. Instead of shaking our heads and saying that water is wet we should be encouraging someone who’s been a hero to many of us and lending a hand.