Teaching one child at a time

The TED speaker I chose to review was Shukla Bose. Her speech was titled “Teaching one child at a time”. This speech inspired me personally because I am a firm believer in the youth carrying out the growth of our world.  She tells the story of her groundbreaking Parikrman Humanity foundation, which brings hope to India’s youth. Her organization has built four schools, one junior college, and helped out 1,100 children coming from the slums of India. Programs like these are amazing because it gives children with no hope a chance at becoming something in life. A common misconception in India is that parents prefer to send their children to work instead of school. Shukla Bose explains in her speech that this is far from the truth. In actuality parents want their children to have a life better than theirs not just in India but also all over the world. In order to attain this parents have to believe it is feasible. The schools the Parikrma Humanity Foundation has built give children this chance.

Children in these schools face other challenges besides education. According to Bose, 98% of the fathers in these families are alcoholics. Parikrman foundation goes beyond education they put the fathers in rehabilitation programs and help them obtain work upon completion, as well as create after school programs for mothers to learn to read and do arithmetic. I feel that if there were more programs like these in the U.S. children in America facing similar situations would benefit. Bose mentioned that several of the children go on to receive college degrees and professional careers. Far too often in the U.S. we let our children fail instead of providing them with the resources necessary to succeed. Under privileged children in America need these kinds of schools and programs to help them and their families get onto the right track.

After seeing this speech I plan to start a non-profit organization to help educate the youth on careers in Sports and Entertainment management. I know that a lot of youth in the inner city see Sports and Entertainment as just becoming an athlete or an entertainer. But I plan to educate these children on the other alternatives there are in becoming a part of these specific industries. By providing these types of developmental facilities more youth can broaden their horizons. I feel that it is important to be a role model for the next generation, this is a necessity if the Sports and Entertainment industry wants to grow and encourage the youth in a more positive direction as in the eloquent speech by Mary McCloud Bethune My Last Will and Testament,  “The youth will take over our future management.”

The Talent Managers Association

The association I decided to research for my specific industry niche is the Talent Managers Association. The Talent Managers Association is a non-profit mutual benefit corporation with a purpose to promote and encourage the highest standards of professional ethics and behavior in the practice of talent management. The TMA seeks to enhance the entertainment industry by its presence and involvement within it. This association is a self-regulating corporation and holds ethics and integrity to the highest standard. On their website they have a link to the Code of Ethics they follow. They also have a page, which contains links to Guilds, Unions and Support Organizations for the industry.

TMA provides activities for its members that provide excellent networking opportunities. They host expert panel discussions and speeches for its members and host special networking events each year. Their mission statement is to provide the opportunity for students to gain experience, make contacts, and learn about the entertainment industry through tour, speakers, and special events.

Being a member of the TMA has several benefits that go beyond networking and informational events. Your business will have a stamp of credibility, discounts on services that are critical to your clients, use of tested TMA contracts for talent representation. As well as free listings with information from your business directly transferred to trade publications.  Among the other benefits you also receive research support and backup from group of professional talent managers to cover legislation and political issues as needed.

I feel that associations like TMA are necessary to keep people in the entertainment industry connected. Often times in the entertainment industry it becomes a battle between companies instead of a friendly prosperous environment. Before I found out about the TMA I already had incorporated ethics as a top priority in my management company. Being a small company in a large market it is difficult to obtain clients and offer what some of the competitors are offering. This is where I feel ethics plays a big role. If more companies join associations the entertainment management industry can be better regulated and weed out the malpractices that are no longer necessary. TMA offers the “Seymour Heller Award” to its members each year. This award is given for excellence in management and to distinguish individuals who respect the field of talent management. I feel that awards like these are needed to show people in the entertainment management industry that there are other ways to do business without being unethical.

EXECUTION WITHIN TEAMWORK

In a team environment there are several factors that come into play in order to be successful. Being able to execute all the tasks is important, and one of the most important factors is the ability to communicate with your team members. First, I believe the team needs to set clear expectations with all the members and make sure that everyone understands these standards. Teamwork calls for commitment and sometimes it’s hard to get all the members to commit to all of the goals. Remember if there is one weak link in the team it can cause many problems down the line. So be sure to address the weak link early. I feel the best way to help a weak link out is positive motivation. When a team member is down and out lend a helping hand. I was once told you never should kick a man while he is down. I found this video clip, and it shows how important teamwork can be. Enjoy!

Battle at Kruger
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LU8DDYz68kM

WORLDSTARHIPHOP WEBSITE REVIEW

World Star Hip Hop is a hip-hop website that brings you daily videos from all different kinds of artists. The viewer can see videos from your average independent artists all the way to the most influential mainstream artists. When the website first came out it was a good source for hip-hop followers to go to and find out what was the latest hip-hop news and music videos, but now it has become a place where artist have to pay to get exposure. I feel that once sponsors came into the picture and the creators of WSHH found out they could generate a lot of money from their site the original idea was steered away from. I frequent the site and now when you go to it you can find anything from music videos to porn and even gag reels. It is not just a hip-hop website anymore now it has become a place to put shocking material to attract viewers. I think the founders are using hip-hop to generate revenue instead of providing its viewers with what they want.

Everyday millions of people go to WSHH to get their daily fix of hip-hop and other non-sense. This website is destroying an art form single handedly by giving viewers a lot of negative information mixed in with far fewer positive music videos. Hip-Hop has influenced a whole culture of people; as a matter of fact it influenced American Music, as we know it today. In order to preserve the culture of hip-hop we (hip-hop community) as a whole need to focus on the positive aspects instead of exploiting woman and violence to make a buck. I think that people that have been following the website from the beginning understand all of the rubbish that has to be filtered through in order to get to the substance. WSHH if you are reading this can you please go back to the drawing board. You have made enough money from the exploitation of hip-hop in a negative perspective. It’s time to uplift the culture again.

Rave Reviews for Kanye West

I recently read the review Rolling Stones did on Kanye West new album My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy. They gave the album a five star rating, which I don’t understand. I am a Kanye West fan but this album is not better than his previous albums Graduation or College Dropout. Everyone knows that Kanye has complained to media outlets about his previous ratings on his work, so I feel that Rolling Stones almost felt obligated to give him a high rating due to them dropping the ball on ratings earlier in Kanye’s career.  

Original Album Cover

Kanye West expects five star ratings on of all his work and when he didn’t receive them in the past, he began to push the envelope and experiment with his music. That is why in the article the author says, “this is Kanye’s most maniacally inspired music yet”.  I don’t feel that an artist should have to go out of their lane just to impress media. Its one thing to be creative it is another to try and make your critics understand what you are trying to do musically. If you listen to West’s first album and have not been a fan since the beginning you might not think it is the same artist. Now don’t get me wrong the album is a great piece of work, I just feel that he was forced to make more pop inspired songs to impress his critics. Also, his original album cover was forced to be changed due to graphic content. Even though in the 70's as Kanye pointed out album covers had actual nude photos where as his is just a personal painting. In the  end Kanye gave in and chose a more media friendly cover. This goes to show us the compromise artist have to make to be successful in todays industry.

Revised Album Cover

Even though the album is projected to sell over 600,000 units in its first week I feel that Kanye is losing his fans he had from the start and is gaining a new fan base. Me personally I like the old Kanye when he was a clever and comical rapper. I think all of this transformation for him as an artist has a lot to do with the passing of his mother and failed relationships. Great music artist put their real life emotions into their work and when you listen to his last two albums you can really see he did exactly that. Even the song that introduced the world to Mr. West was a real life situation about his near life ending car accident. So he has always made music from his real life emotions and events. There are certain albums you buy and they will stay in your music player for a whole year and there are others that you like for a month or so. This album deserves the high reviews its getting but at the same time don’t give a man praise just because he is making maniac inspired music. Go back and listen to the past albums and give them the ratings they deserve. I am no critic, I am a fan and I would like to hear the music I became a fan of in the first place. It is okay to experiment with your music but make sure you are doing it for the right reasons.

Interview with Superstar DJ ART

Ant: How did you get your start in the music industry?

DJ Art: I was passionate about DJing and started out doing events on campus and got a buzz then it was on from then.

Ant: What college did you attend?

DJ Art: Fisk University and Belmont University

Ant: What did you study?

DJ Art: Political Science/Audio Engineering

Ant: What projects have you handled?

DJ Art: I have worked on several projects most recently working with Jones from 101the beat we have put together a mix tape series called “That’s How I Feel”, I have recorded a majority of the independent artist in Nashville, TN as I am an audio engineer as well as a DJ.

Ant: What has been your biggest memory in your DJing career?

DJ Art: I would say my biggest memory would be opening up for Kid Capri he was one of my idols growing up as a kid.

Ant: What is the name of your DJ crew?

DJ Art: I am in two DJ crews I have been part of New York’s DJ Kings where I serve as a radio mix dee jay on mix1620 as well as my own crew the YO deejays with myself, Jones and DJ Whuteva.

Ant: What major artists have you DJ'd for?

DJ Art: I have dee jayed for Young Buck, Yo Gotti, Hi – C, Jim Jones, Big Pooh, and All Star.

Ant: What advice would you give to up and coming DJ's?

DJ Art: As a DJ our job is to break records and keep the crowd moving. To be successful I suggest building a respectable brand, don’t try to be like the next guy and making sure your humble, the same people you see on your way to the top you will see when you fall, tomorrow's gig is not promised.

Ant: Where are you from?

DJ Art: Philadelphia

Ant: What is your ultimate goal for your career?

DJ Art: The ultimate goal is to start up a metropolitan music school targeted for under privileged children with a passion in audio and music.

Ant: What artists do you look forward to working with?

DJ Art: I look forward to or hope to work with Wiz Khalifah, Nas and lord willing Beyonce.

Ant: I heard you are venturing into producing is that true?

DJ Art: DJing and producing come hand in hand I am getting back into it so be on the look out and check for me at www.alreadyknowmix.com

Limewire A Thing of the Past

           On October 26, 2010 the worlds most installed file-sharing application, Limewire was ordered to disable all functionalities in its current application. This came after the RIAA asked a federal court to investigate Limewire and the file-sharing activities they have been using for the last decade. The record labels have been arguing over the last few years claiming that Limewire has caused billions of dollars in lost revenue and that it is therefore one of the biggest threats to the music industry’s decline.

            According to the court, Limewire intentionally tried to persuade users to use their services rather than go out and buy artists music. The evidence showed that Limewire marketed their application to Napster users and that their business practices depended on mass copyright infringments. Some experts say that with the shutdown of Limewire the music industry should see an increase in music sales over the next year. I find this a little hard to believe especially being that bit-torrent sites are the main culprit in illegal downloads currently. I’m hoping that the next target will be to shut down all bit-torrent sites. I feel that if the government starts to crack down on these massive piracy applications the music industry will not only begin to see increase in sales, but will also allow growth for all genres of music.

            Although the decision to close Limewire is the first step to ending online-piracy in the music industry. There have been rumors saying that the owners of Limewire are planning to open another file-sharing service for users that have a so-called “non-infringing “ service. I feel that the government needs to catch the process of these guys starting a new service before it gets out of hand. In my opinion file sharing is okay as long as someone is paying for the product. These artists put in a lot of time and effort to give us good music let’s start giving them what they deserve.