The question has been posed over and over, "Why do we give little support to our own talent, but go out of the way to show love to some bamma that blows through for one night?"
Unfortunately, this is nothing new. I remember the "NY vs. DC" shows in the 80's where the crowd ended up losing it when the rappers came out. This was a little unsettling for me, but it was bearable because the rappers respected what go-go was doing then. Times have changed and so have the attitudes.
Everyone has had some sort of opinion about the show, or lack of, which took place at the D.C. Armory on March 16. The headliner was to be Emeniem's new protégé, 50 Cent.
The show was scheduled to end at 7:30, but as the clock struck 8:00, 50 Cent had yet to take the stage. Apparently, the delay was due to a misunderstanding about the amount of cash that was going to be paid that night. The star's management team would not allow him to take stage until they were delivered an additional $1,500. A Washington Post article quotes local promoter Von Black on how he got 50 take the stage, "I said 'You guys are going to call him and tell him to come, or leave the money behind and walk and see how you do getting home.'"
In response, 50 Cent's manager, Mike Lighty sent a scathing email to local promoter Ron Moten. Mr. Lighty was quoted as saying, "Your some corny ass niggas for fronting like your had a nigga under pressure and that's why show went down. Never again will I show you love..."
What the?
Never again will they show us love?
How is stalling a few thousand fans showing love? I haven't seen such a lack of respect for fans since Bobby Brown made the crowd wait over an hour at the 1989 Superfest. We all know now what Bobby's problems were, but this is a case of greed. We are lining the pockets of unappreciative artists and mangers by buying CDs and tickets to shows, only to be kept waiting an hour for a 25 minute performance? Why do we accept this? Without their adoring fans, these superstars on stage would still be just another knucklehead on the corner.
WKYS and WPGC claim to be the station for R&B and Hip-Hop; with the exception of a few individuals that we all love, the stations show little love for go-go. An artist that shows no respect for the people of DC will get his song played on the radio in heavy rotation. Why should they get this kind of airplay? Stop requesting these songs. Instead of picking up the phone to ask for a song that has already been played 12 times anyway, request a song by a local artist. Not only do we have our own original music that we need to support, but there are also many hip-hop artists in the city.
Unlike these out of town rappers, I do not make $30,000 for 25 minutes of work and I refuse to give my money to anyone or anyplace that will not treat me with respect as a customer and a person. People, can you say "boycott?"
We make them; we can break them.
