Early January 2021 News.

  

 

The year of 2000 in R&B music had a smorgasbord of underrated classic and underrated vocalists constantly. If you loved dance music, it was there. If you love romantic or love songs, they were in abundance. If you love songs with a message or with conscious issues, there flourished too during the year of 2000. By January of 2000, songs like Donell Jones' U Know What's Up and Hot Boyz (with Missy, Nas, Eve, and Q-Tip) were very much popular in the charts. The 1999 song of Montell Jordan's Get I On Tonite was still high on the charts on February of 2000. Mariah Carey worked with Joe on a song named Thank God I Found You. In the year of 2000, Destiny's Child's song of Say My Name was everywhere, especially starting in March of 2000. That song was from their 1999 album of The Writing's on the Wall. Toni Braxton made her third studio album called The Heart on April 25, 2000. It had a more urban sound which departed form her usual ballads. Yet, it was a great album in its own right. The album had people on it like Lisa Left Eye Lopes, Dr. Dre, and production done by Keri Lewis (a former member of Mint Condition. Keri Lewis was Toni's Braxton former husband). Songs on it were Just Be a Man About It, He Wasn't Man Enough, Spanish Guitar, and Maybe. She won one Grammy for it during the 2001 Grammy Awards for Best Female R&B Vocal Performance. Cal Thomas in 2000 had the song I Wish. One of the most underrated singers of the year 2000 is Avant. His song with Separated is a classic. Many marriage had the album of Let's Get Married by Jagged Edge. Sisqo did a music video with the actress Lisa Raye called Incomplete. The year 2000 had many songs about relationships like No More from Ruff Endz, Wifey from Next, and other music. Xcape had the song of Bounce with Me featuring Bow wow. Profyle had the song called liar. Erykah Badu had the women's anthem of Bag Lady. R Kelly had I wish. The end of the year of 2000 had many anthems like Ms. Jackson which is about the tensions among child support and parents. Destiny's Child had the song of Independent Women Part 1. This song was from the Charlie's Angels' movie and the album of Survivor. It featured Beyonce, Kelly Rowland, and Michelle Williams. In that same year, D'Angelo had the song of Untitled (How Does it Feel), Lucy Pearl had the song of Dance Tonight, and Aaliyah had the song of Try Again. Try Again was part of the Romeo Must Die soundtrack. Timbaland produced the song. Aaliyah was the perfect artist to sing over futuristic beats. Try Again was one of the greatest songs of the 2000s. Mya's Case of the Ex in 2000 was the time where Mya shown the world that she is a grown woman. Mya danced greatly in that video. That song was part of her album called Fear of Flying. The album had the song of The Best of Me featuring Jadakiss, Free, etc. The gospel music duo of Mary Mary had the song of Shackles (Praise You). It mixed R&B beats with gospel music. 3LW had music like No More. Ja Rule worked with R&B musicians at this time. Even in 2000, this was taboo, but now many hip hop artists are doing it all of the time. The British artist Craig David had 7 Days. A lot of people didn't know that Pink did the song of There You Go which is opposite of her rock sound now. Pink admitted that her rock sound is her authentic self. Crazy from K-Ci and JoJo was one of their emotional records. Sammie made the song of I Like It. Tamia in 2000 had Stranger in My House which dealt with romance. Kelly Price"s He should of Told Me, , Dave Hollister's One Woman Man, and Avant ft. Keke Wyatt's My First Love were classics. Avant and Keke Wyatt had great musical chemistry (both of them sang on that record beyond just signing). That is why they made more records. 

 

Sade made another comeback with the song of By Your Side. Her album in that time was Lovers Rock. When that album came about, I was a senior in high school at November 13, 2000. It had reggae influences too. King of Sorrow was another song on that classic album. Lonnie Lynn made the Light song. Janet Jackson made the song of Doesn't Really Matter with an important message about how true love can work despite distractions. Musiq Soulchild released Love to represent for the neo-soul crowd. That Other Woman was released by Changing Faces, and Joe released Treat her like a Lady (including the club banger Stutter). Gerald Levert, Whitney Houston, Debelah Morgan, Shaggy, Nelly, and other artists shown their musical talent. Jill Scott is one of the most souful, neo-soul singers of all time. She had co-writing the song of You Got Me (filled with Erykah Badu, the Roots, and a rap verse from Eve). Jill Scott's debut album was "Who is Jill Scott? Words and Sounds Vol. 1, which was released on July 18, 2000. One of her signature, popular songs was the single of "A Long Walk." Another song in the album was the sensual song of "He Love Me."  The album is one of the greatest albums of the 21st century. Jill Scott is a gorgeous black woman from Philadelphia with excellent musical gifts that fans always appreciate. She is an actress and philanthropist too. 

 

2001 saw 9/11. By 2001, Stutter was high on the charts too. 112 released the song It's Over Now. This was part of their album Part III. Slim and Daron shared lead vocals on the song. Jagged Edge's Promise was about commitment in relationships. All for You from Janet Jackson showed amazing dance  choreography from her. Janet Jackson was 35 years old during that time, and the song was part of her album of All for You. That song caused her to get a Grammy Award for Best Dance Recording. Usher had the song of U Remind Me. This was part of her album of 8701. This album took him into another level of being a musical star. It had singles like U Got it Bad, U Don't Have to Call, U-Turn, and Can U Help Me. The Neptunes and Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis had production on the album. He won Grammys and BET Awards. R Kelly worked with Jay Z in the song Fiesta. Mariah Carey had Loverboy with Cameo. Guinwine had Differences, Mary J. Blige had Family Affair, and Jagged Edge f. Nelly had the club anthem of Where the Party At. Alicia Keys made her debut with the song of Fallin'. Alicia Keys sings greatly and could play the piano. Fallin' was a huge hit. The melodies and sounds of the song had gospel influences. It won many awards. Her first album was Songs in a Mirror from June 5, 2001. Her music like A Woman's Worth, How Come You Don't Call Me, and Girlfriend were powerful. She is a great songwriter too. The start of Alicia Keys was similar to others in that Alicia first came out and people knew that her career would be long and legendary. She was part of the nu-soul revolution. Many unsung artists released music like Sunshine Anderson 's Heard it All Before, Blu Cntrll's Hit Em up Style, Jaheim, Tank, Faith Evans, Babyface's There She Goes, Jimmy Cozier, City High, etc. 2001 was the year of the tragic passing of Aaliyah by a plane accident. Her 2001 album of Aaliyah was a classic too. She had old school songs with new school flavor. Aaliyah was so ahead of her time that would be on the level of Beyonce and Rihanna if she was alive today. People don't know that Aaliyah was a great actress too. Michael Jackson's Invincible album had the old school songs with songs like You Rock My World and Butterflies. Lady Marmalade was a song with Christina Aguilera, Lil' Kim, Pink, and Mya. 

 

It's Over Now from 112 in 2001 was popular, Jon B's Don't Talk was popular, and the Isley Brothers had the song of Contagious. Brian McKnight's Love of My Life, Ebony Vibe Everlasting, Ja Rule ft. Ashanti's Always on Time, Ray J, Lil' Mo's Superoman Part II, Tyrese, Koffee Brown's After Party, Mis-Teeq, Missy Elliot, and other artists made 2001 an excellent year of music. 2002 saw the growth of rappers singing with R&B singers like Ja Rule and Ashanti. Back then, that was very taboo. Tweet had the song of Oops with Missy Elliot. Tweet is one of the most unsung, great singers of the 21st century. She has a very sweet, sultry voice. She was born in Rochester, NY. She can sing, play the guitar, and songwrite. She grew up in the church playing multiple instruments. Her debut album was Southern Hummingbird. She worked with Bilal and Ms. Jade on the album. Ashanti made her song of Foolish in 2002. Ashanti is always a humble woman. This was part of her debut album of Ashanti. Nelly worked with Kelly Rowland in the song of Dilemma. Missy made the song Work It with innovative sounds. Erykah Badu made the album of Love of My Life (An Ode to Hip Hop). This was part of the Brown Sugar movie soundtrack. It's a very inspirational, excellent song. That song helped to bridge the gap among hip hop and R&B music. Eve worked with Alicia Keyes in the 2002 song of Gangsta Lovin' Amerie had the 2002 song of Why Don't We Fall in Love. Amerie is another of the most underrated artist of that time period. She has harmonies, soul, singing ability, and a great voice. She was from the D.C. area and many of her beats are influenced by the go-go sound. Rich Harrison produced many of her songs. She worked with Nas and LL Cool J plus other hip hop artists. All I Have was Amerie's debut album. She later won many BET and Soul Train Music Awards. 2002 was an outstanding start for Amerie's career as a musician. Later, she would make more music, go out to write, and have a family. Other artists with music in 2002 were Donell Jones, Sean Paul with Gimmie The Light, Ginuwine with Stingy, Avant, Musiq Soulchild, Addictive with Truth Hurts, Mario, Mariah Carey's Through The Rain, B2K, Brandy's Full Moon, Glenn Lewis, Jennifer Lopez, Jaheim, and Dru Hill. 2002 was the time when there were tons of hip hop and R&B collaborations. 

 

2003 would be a year in transition. There was one R&B artist who would just blow up to be the icon of the 21st century. We know what her name is, and she was born in Houston, Texas. Before that, there were outstanding R&B music in diverse ways too. The song Miss You by Aaliyah was high on the charts in early 2003. This song celebrated the life and legacy of the great artist of Aaliyah. The music video of the song featured diverse artists like Missy, Lil' Kim, Tweet, Queen Latifah, Jaheim, Lyric, Lil Jon and the Eastside Boyz, Jamie Foxx, DMX, Quincy Jones, Amanda Lewis, Free, and other human beings who gave tribute to the legend Aaliyah. Monica released the song of So Gone in 2003. This song was part of her album After the Storm. Monica is one of the greatest singers of her generation. This album was about her struggles, her joy, and her power as a young black woman. One of the greatest songs on the album is U Should've Known Better. 2003 saw more rappers singing on records like Jay Z's Excuse Me Miss and 50 Cent ft. Nate Dogg's 21 Questions. Pharrell worked with Jay Z in 2003 with the song Frontin. Baby Boy was the song with Beyonce ft. Sean Paul. Alicia Keys had the song of You Don't Know My Name. R Kelly had Step in the Name of Love. I don't agree with R. Kelly's crimes against girls and women. I want to make that clear. On June 17, 2003, Beyonce released her album of Dangerously in Love. Before, Beyonce made very few solo records, but with that 2003 album, she went into another level of power. Beyonce wrote songs, danced, and entertained crowds. Beyonce is the first black woman named Songwriter of the Year from ASCAP back in 2002. Beyonce made hit after hit from her first solo album like Me, Myself and I, Crazy in Love (ft. Jazy Z), Naughty Girl, Yes, Signs, etc. Her ballads were powerful, and she was interviewed by Oprah Winfrey in 2003 as well. That Dangerously in Love album made her won 5 Grammy Awards, BET Awards, etc. Beyonce is just a phenomenally talented black woman, and she was 22 when she made her first solo album Dangerously in Love. In 2003, Ginuwine made In Those Jeans, Ashanti had Rock Wit U, and Marques Houston had Clubbin. Jagged Edge with Walked Outta Heaven, Avant with Read Your Mind, Lumidee's song of Never Leave You, Mary J. Blige's Ooh!, and Mya's My Love is Like Woo focused on love and relationships. Andre 3000 made the song of Hey Ha which was ahead of its time. Many classic records in 2003 were The Isley Brothers' What Would you Do?, Kelis' Milkshake, Ruben Studdard's Superstar, Lil' Mo ft. Fabulous 4 Ever. Luther Vandross's 2003 song of Dance with My Father was one of his final songs before his passing. Black Eyed Peas had the song Where is The Love? featuring Fergie. Kem had the song of Love Calls, Thalia had I want You, and That Girl was the song form Marques Houston. 2003 had classic albums like The Senior from Ginuwine, Body Kiss from the Isley Brothers featuring Ronald Isley, Ashanti's Chapter II, Luther Vandross' Dance with My Father, Mary J. Blige's Love and Life, Jagged Edge's Hard, Gerald Levert's Stroke of Genius, and the Diary of Alicia Keys. Alicia Keys had songs by the end of 2003 like If It A'int Got You, Diary, and Karma. Alicia Keys continued with her legacy with that second album. 2003 ended with R&B showing music that touched the human soul. 

  

For over 150 years, Oakland has existed in its power and influence. Flourishing with diversity and culture, Oakland is one of the most socially conscious cities in the world. When an injustice comes about, people in Oakland are out to protest that injustice.  It has been home to one of the destinations of the Second Great Migration. The Second Great Migration was a time from 1940 to 1970 where millions of African Americans traveled from the South into the North, the Midwest, and the West Coast (for the purpose of escaping oppressing and seeking better social, economic opportunities). Much of the culture of Oakland resides in its diverse music from Tony Toni Tone, MC Hammer, and Sheila E. Oakland is a West Coast port city found in the East Bay region of the overall Bay Area.  It's the third largest city in the San Francisco Bay Ara, and it's the 8th most populated city in California. It has over 433,000 people with about 77.89 square miles (with 55 square miles of land). Oakland has been the home of many social movements like the Black Panther Party of Self Defense which was formed in 1966 (by Bobby Seale and Huey Newton). In fact, one time, black people were about 57% of the population of Oakland by 1980. To this day, the Moms 4 Housing is fighting for housing rights. It has been the home of diverse people like C. L. Dellums, Ron Dellums, Jerry Brown, Marcus Goster, Alicia Garza, Kamala Harris, Fred Korematsu, Keyshia Cole, En Vogue, The Pointer Sisters, Clara Elizabeth Chan Lee, and other human beings. The story of Oakland is an American story filled with overcoming challenges, hard work, resisting oppressive systems, and realizing that to have victory is to work together sincerely for real change. If you want change, then action constructively used to promote justice must be enacted thoroughly. 

  

 

When Ronald Reagan's name comes up, debate and emotions come up. Depending on who you talk to, some view Reagan as a terrible person or a conservative, heroic crusader. The truth about Ronald Reagan is that he was a man with a complex, controversial history. Not to many people know that Reagan was once a FDR Democrat and later became an anti-Communist Republican by the 1950's. Not to mention many people know that Ronald Reagan opposed the 1964 Civil Rights Act, the 1965 Voting Rights Act, and legislation that would later be Medicare. Many human beings don't know that Ronald Reagan  said that the Confederate President Jefferson Davis was a "a hero of mine." The truth that Jefferson Davis was a racist traitor to the United States of America. This and other reasons definitely cause me to not view Ronald Reagan as a hero of truth and justice. With Reagan, what you see is what you get. He didn't lie about his reactionary politics or his intentions. He was a man who eloquently displayed his conservative views that convinced tons of people to make him have 2 terms of President of the United States. As a black man, you know how I feel about Reagan. It is what it is. Yet, it is important to evaluate his life and legacy as it is now 110 years after his birth, and it has been 40 years after the start of the Reagan Revolution (or his inauguration as the 40th President of the United States of America). Ronald Reagan was a political man. He loved the competition of politics. That is why he ran for President in in 1968, in 1976, and in 1980. In our time, he was the most influential voice of conservative thought. He gained massive prominence politically by speaking in favor of Barry Goldwater's candidacy via his 1964 speech entitled, "A Time for Choosing." That speech signified the complete thinking of conservative thought. He was an actor, an Air Force veteran, a father, and a person who abhorred Communism. He lived to see the end of the Cold War. He lived form 1911 to 2004. He passed away when I was almost 21 years old. Regardless of my ideological disagreements with Reagan on many issues, he was the most influential 20th century President since Franklin Delano Roosevelt. The recent revelation of Ronald Reagan using a racist slur against Africans confirmed what us black Americans were constantly telling people about what Reagan's legacy is. Forty years of the Reagan Revolution is finally over (I'm thankful of it being over), and now it is time for this new generation to witness the truth about Ronald Reagan completely.  

  

To describe hip hop today is interesting. From 2012 to the present, the new era of trap music, drill music, lyrical hip hop, Soundcloud rap, mumble rap, underground hip hop, and other types of hip hop are in existence. This time is not without controversy. There is a generation gap where many older hip hop artists (and older hip hop fans) don't like some of the soundcloud rap today because of various reasons. Some want a more emphasis on lyricism, and some don't like the messages presented by some modern day hip hop artists. The truth is obvious. Many modern day hip hop artists do promote violence, drug abuse, hate for women, murder, and other evils that shouldn't be glorified as good. Some modern hip hop artists lack respect for elders and harbor little musical talent (like Lil Xan, Lil Pump, and 6IX9INE). Yet, this is not representative of every young hip hop artist. In every generation ever since hip hop was created, you will still find many hip hop musicians flourishing with great talent. Today, the following hip hop artists of modern days have great talent: Sampa the Great, Sa-roc, Rapsody, J. Cole, Joyner Lucas, Kendrick Lamar, Vince Staples, Joey Bad__, Ab Soul, Big K.R.I.T., Earl Sweatshirt, Danny Brown, CyHi the Prince, Logic, Brother Ali, and other human beings. Trap music of today use double or triple time sub-divided hi-hats,heavy kick drums from the Roland TR-808 drum machines, layered synthesizers, and some use other themes. By the 2010's to the present, many artists are part of the trap, drill, and soundcloud hip hop movement like Future, Chief Keef, 21 Savage, Fetty Wap, Rae Sremmurd, etc. During this modern era of hip hop (from 2012 to the present day of 2021), there is the growth of a new generation of women showing hip hop like Megan Thee Stallion, City Girls, Nicki Minaj, Cardi B, Tierra Whack, Doja Cat, Chika, Young M.A, Kash Doll, Rico Nasty, Dreezy, Tokyo Jetz, Saweetie, Noname, Kamiayah, Flo Milli, Ivy Sole, Ill Camille, and so many other people. The world of hip hop in 2021 is that it's diverse. It has changed from its start in the modern sense from 1973. These artists sacrificed a lot to get at their positions today. Very few people know of their struggles from contracts, people doubting them, and management. With 2021, we see the BLM movement, a new President, a pandemic still spreading, political crisis, and other important issues that hip hop artists are readily talking about, not just about having fun (as it is fine to make music about joy, having fun, romance, love, and political issues as well). We are clear to put things into context of acknowledging talent while being clear to promote righteousness in our lives. 

  

The terrorists who stormed the United States Capitol building used a sophisticated, strategic plan in order to stop the peaceful transfer of power to Joe Biden and Kamala Harris. It was an attempted coup d'etat against democratic government. Trump and his allies must be held accountable for their actions. Twitter is warning that terrorists are trying to plan a 2nd attack on January 17 at the U.S. Capitol including other state capitols including on January 20, 2021. Google Play has banned Parler including Apple and Amazon. Some news is that one man was caught carrying 11 Molotov cocktails. The Feds are trying to get the rest of the terrorists. Congressional support for impeachment now tops almost 250 members. Event GOP Senator Toomey said that Trump should resign, and Trump could face criminal liabilities. There is no other solution but prosecution of the criminals and Trump being impeached and removed from office. This is beyond political disagreement. This is about one man named Trump calling for insurrection against the United States of America. That is an attack on all Americans. These hate groups planned this domestic terrorist attack for a long time. It is not just Trump who is to be blamed. 

Any GOP member who aided Trump and Trump supporters aided the growth of the toxic atmosphere. The mob assaulted an AP photographer. Twitter has permanently suspended Trump's account permanently after inciting a mob. Ginni Thomas or the wife of Clarence Thomas paid for 70 buses to allow mob to come to D.C. Ginni supported the rioters before they stormed the U.S. Capitol. The coup d'etat failed, and we are in favor of democracy more than ever. This is beyond politics. Trump ought to be impeached and removed from office now. You know these hypocritical pro-Trump mobs always lecture us on blue lives, but these terrorists have assaulted police officers and murdered one police officer via their actions in the U.S. Capitol. BLM never did these acts at all. While BLM promotes peaceful protests, these racist terrorists were violent in D.C. While BLM promotes justice against police brutality, these racist terrorists promote nihilism and lies. While BLM has used words of promoting democratic freedom, these racist terrorists have shown Confederate flags and anti-Semitic T-Shirts in harboring hatred of democratic rights (and hatred of democratic institutions). 

One Capitol police officer who died was named Brian Sicknick. He was murdered by being hit in the head by a fire extinguisher by a terrorist. He tried to stop the mob from taking over the U.S. Capitol. Cruz and Hawley plus others who have coddled these fascists including Trump (and they questioned the election results) ought to be feel shame. The Capitol attack was filled with violent white supremacists, anti-Semites, far right militia groups, and other fascists who abhor truth. One person with zip ties and a suit has been arrested, and the rest of the people involved in this treason should be arrested. Many Congresspeople could have been massacred. It's a shame. We have to unify against fascism. Now, we know that a 2nd Capitol police officer has died from the insurrection. Cruz and Hawley should resign. These insurrectionists included evil people. Trump inciting an insurrection against  the government of the United States makes him a traitor. These rioters beat U.S. Capitol police with flag polls, and one person was caught on tape punching the glass. We shouldn't coddle racists, fascists, and enemies of freedom. We should advocate accountability (as anyone involved in the storming should be arrested, and Trump can be banned by the Senate from holding federal office again) for those who harmed democracy. 

  

 

 

Many of my distant cousins live in Florida which is located in the South. My 2nd cousin Velicia Renna Spencer was born on November 15, 1966, and she lives in Florida. Her daughter is Zandria Bashane Byrant (born in 1990). Zandria's father is Richardo Cardell Bryant. Zandria Bryant is my 2nd cousin, and she was born in Stuart, Florida. Zandria is a person with a Master's degree, studies mental health issues, and is an expert in helping others prodigiously. We share the Carl D. (1886-1968) or my great grandfather. Zandria's mother is Velicia Renna Spencer. Velicia's mother was Clarise D. (1934-2002). Clarise's parents were Linwood D. (1907-1971) and Bashie Ann Whitmore (1907-1963). Linwood D.'s parents were Carl D. (1886-1968) and Lizzie Trice (1885-1950). My fourth cousin Charles Anthony Whitehead (b. 1962) was born in Franklin, Virginia. He married Sabrina Denise Bailey on December 29, 1989. Charles Anthony Whitehead's parents are Elijah Whitehead Sr. (1934-2009) and Elizabeth Euince Ridley (b. 1938). Elizabeth Euince Ridley's parents are Arthur Riddley (1910-1990) and Etta Claud (1919-2106). Etta Claud's father was Richard Washington Claud (1874-1945). Richard Washington Claud's father was George Washington Claud (1854-1923), and George's mother was my 5th grandmother Zilphy Claud (1820-1893). Charles Anthony Whitehead's siblings are Elijah Whitehead Jr., Natarcha Renee Whitehead, and Denise Sturdifen who are my 4th cousins.  

 By Timothy