Hey Guys its been a while, I hope your all well !!! I’ve been quite busy and finding it hard to write, but a friend of mine recommended that i listen to Childish Gambino, and needless to say, i was provoked. Hallelujah. The announced ‘Metropolitan Rapper’ illustrated the Gangsta Grills mixtape as a dream where he wakes up in the Garden Isle, establishing the EP Kauai. I really enjoyed the Ep and i can only best describe it as “Hip Trop”, Tropical Hip Hop. Its coloured, romantic, chilled as well as insightful.The proceeds for the Ep go towards helping Kauai stay clean and working for a healthier Hawaii. Now I was already in euphoria when the vision ‘Late night in Kauai’, featuring Jaden Smith proclaimed as ‘The New Black Gandhi’ ,had surfaced. The poetry was dancing around in my head, when i was ambushed, choke-slammed by the OUTRO:
Its all about packaging right?/ Real shit though, good and bad is all relative man/ It really is, a lot of Niggas is sheep/ We don’t even know what we like anymore we just know what the most hype is shit/ Do you really like that shit you like?/ Or you like the way they gave it to you?/ You Know what I’m saying? Pepsi, Coca- Cola same thing/ Dave Chapelle said that, the one that taste the best was the one that was paying him the most at the time./
DEAD. He said, i quote “Do You Really Like That Shit You Like? Or you like the way they gave it to you”. I really wanted to explore the likeness between Coca-Cola and Pepsi’s ingredients, to decode advertising VS product:
COCA-COLA in 2011:
Carbonated water. High Fructose Corn syrup Caramel Color Phosphoric Acid Natural Flavours Caffeine Pepsi in 2011:
Carbonated Water Sugar Caramel Color Phosphoric Acid Natural Flavours Caffeine
What is “Natural Flavours”? What colour would it be without its “Caramel Colour”? i don’t even know what its suppose to taste of. With no nutritional value at all, these beverages don’t even hydrate your body, but Coca-Cola is the best selling soft drink company in the world. Making number 4 on the Forbes ‘Worlds Most Valuable Brands List’ . With a $45.91 Billion in revenue, $92.02 Billion in assets and $7.1 Billion in profits, the Market cap is a staggering $179.9 Billion dollars. Its prime role has gone from hydrating your body to selling. According to AD AGE DATACENTER, in 2013, the brand spent $565 million in advertising in the US and $3.3 Billion worldwide. Sugar and Water.
My question is has art become as empty as “Sugar and Water”. Its prime function to sell as opposed to provoking emotion, sparking discussions and providing a message. Would you still buy that album without pink wigs and flash cars? Would you still watch the musical or play without a celebrity on its billboard? Would you still buy that outfit if that celebrity didn’t wear it first ? When you strip away the exterior of the art were sold, what’s left? Empty calories ? Do you really like the shit you like or do you like the way they gave it to you?
ART IS POWER